I went to the dentist Friday for a painful tooth. I also have a white spot on my inside cheek that is also rough feeling.
My dentist thought it might be thrust but was not sure. He put me on a antibiotic for my tooth and said if the white spot was still there would send me to a oral surgeon for a biopsy.
Now, I have never heard of penicillin clearing up thrust. I also though thrust usually spread all over your mouth and tongue and was quite painful.
I have no pain with this white spot. I am also a smoker for twenty years. Needless to say I am scared and worried and starting to panic!
It will be over three weeks until I see my dentist again. Should I go to someone for a second opinion or wait until I see him. If it is oral cancer will three weeks or more make a difference?
Thank you,
Deb

Hello Deb, I think for your peace of mind you should talk to your primary doctor about a referral to an ENT (ear nose and throat) specialist. I don't think penicillin will help if it is thrush and I don't see any reason why you should have to wait for a drug that WILL help if it is thrush.

Please try not to panic except if it motivates you to quit smoking. There are many things that aren't cancer, and only a biopsy will prove if it is or is not. I can't say that three weeks would make a difference but I can tell you that these cancers generally start slowly and grow over a period of months and even years. If you know that the white patch has been there longer than 2 weeks then have it looked at. This would be true for any kind of sore or lesion that dosn't heal.

There are NO health benifits from smoking.

Take care and please let us know what happens.

Candida (thrush) can have the white top coat scraped off with a fingernail, leucoplakia wil not be removed by the same technique. Your dentist should know this. Further, Candida is a fungal infection, antibiotics have no effect on it. The current drug of choice is Diflucan, a fungicide. Thrush (Candida albicans) is not painful as a rule, I had it numberous times after radiation. Search the main body fo the web site with the engine there and there are lots of articles on it on the site. If you have a rough feeling to that patch on your cheek, it could be something as simple hyperkeritosis from abrasion of the teeth adjacent to it, and that could stay there longer than the two week period we always refer to. I think you should get a second opinion. You don't say where you are in Florida, but if you are near a dental school, they always have a dental medicine specialist on staff and that would be a good choice to have look at this. This kind of dentist is trained in oral pathologies and the school wiil also have a oral pathologist on staff as well. Another option would be to have an oral surgeon have a look at this, he would also be able to do a quick biopsy if he felt it warrented while you were there to see him.

Thank you so much for replying to my post. I have decided to call an oral surgeon Monday. I would rather know what it is and do something about it instead of waiting around for a month or longer to get an answer. At least I will know what I am dealing with.
If its oral cancer I can start treatment and if not I will be getting help to stop smoking. I will be quitting the cigarettes ether way.
Thanks to both of you for taking the time to answer.
Deb