It's not just an "oral cancer" exam.

The early identification and treatment of cancer of the head and neck, including oropharyngeal cancer (OPC), is associated with an improved survival rate. Specific efforts to promote screening to improve the early detection of OPC have come under scrutiny, largely due to the low prevalence of the disease. However, screening the patient for OPC does not occur as an isolated event in contemporary practice, but as an integral component of the hard and soft tissue examination to determine the totality of the patient's oral health. Three patient vignettes are presented to demonstrate that, regardless the outcome of the debate over OPC screening, the oral health care professional who performs a thorough examination of the head and neck is often in the best position to discover early cancer affecting the head and neck.