where is the white patch?

As for smoking and marijuana and what not, they say that smoking doesn't cause this unless you have smoked for years and years and years and years. I have a different oppinion about that statement as I was 25 when i was diagnosed, and i smoked on and off for 7 years, maybe a total of 4 years. And I know of others, like a 22 year old who was diagnosed when she was 20 and she smoked for just a few years too.

As for your teeth growing apart. When I had my braces taken off, they gave me some clear retainers that i was supposed to wear. I wore them for like a year like i was supposed to, and then i stupidly gave up on them. And sure enough, the space in my teeth came back, and my teeth went pretty much right back to how they were before the braces went on.

I will say this. I know you are young, and are weary of telling your parents. But I honestly think you should. I saw a dentist when my first spot showed up, and they told me it wasn't cancer, cuz it didn't look like cancer, and i was too young for it. But i insisted if they didn't know what to do further, that they refer me to someone that would. They then referred me to an oral surgeon, that like my dentist said it couldn't be cancer cuz it didn't look like it and i was too young. 3 months later of me pushing and pushing and pushing for a biopsy, and they finally exhausted all the other options of what it could be, they finally biopsied and it came back as stage 3.

I urge you to tell you parents about this, and I guarantee that whatever trouble you get into will be worth it in the long run, even if this isn't cancer, because it may help you get things straightened out in your life, and help you see what life is really about.

I am not trying to say what you are doing is wrong, when i was younger i smoked cigs, marijuana and drank, but my mom was the supplier of things, so i didn't have to worry about getting in trouble. But now, I wish I had someone to help me stop those things, cuz i may not be where I am today, with half a tongue, a big scar on my neck and left forearm.

This is nothing to take half heartedly, and it can kill you if you don't take it seriously enough. Please, don't just wait it out. They say if you see something and it doesn't clear up in 2 weeks, to go see a oral surgeon or a ENT. They will know more about oral cancer then any dentist will.

Please don't take this so lightly. Its a very serious thing, and more and more younger people are getting this, so please, if it lasts longer then 2 weeks, make sure you get checked out by a oral surgeon or ent!!

They told me if i had gone 6 more months with out treatment, i would have been dead. That would have been 10 months after I initially found it. It can be aggressive, and other times it can take it's sweet time.