Oral cancer belongs to the family of oropharyngeal cancer that affects the mouth and all its surroundings. This includes the backside of the mouth and the lining of the throat. In its early stages, there will be no signs or symptoms of oral cancer. Hence, smokers and regular drinkers should get regular checkups done with the dentist to detect the possibility of oral cancer at the initial stages.

Among several treatment methods for oral cancer, the popular ones have been covered in previous articles.

• Targeted therapy
  The epidermal growth factor receptor is present in most oral tumor cells. This hormone increases the cancer cells to multiply rapidly if left untreated. It also becomes resistant to radiation and chemotherapy. Under such circumstances, targeted medication treatment attacks the EGFR hormone and stops the growth of cancer cells. It can be given as a standalone treatment or in combination with other treatments. This advanced treatment does not affect healthy tissues and only targets the tumor cells.
• Immunotherapy
  It is one of the broad treatment methods for oral cancer that attack tumor cells that have invaded the immune system. It is a specialized type of therapy that works to stimulate the immune system to fight cancer. It is exclusively given to individuals where the advanced tumor does not respond to standard treatments. Immunotherapy includes: Checkpoint inhibitors
  They expose the cancer cells to the immune system and disrupt their signals by attacking them. There are protein receptors that differentiate cancer cells from healthy ones. These inhibitors signal the immune system about the normal cells and leave them untouched. The inhibitors then expose the cancerous cells for an attack.

  Vaccines
  They treat specific cancers and prevent the underlying conditions that lead to cancer. Vaccines for treating cancer are of two types:
  Prophylactic or preventative vaccines
  It attacks viruses that possibly cause cancer. It’s an HPV vaccine that targets strains of papillomavirus causing most cervical, throat, mouth, and anal cancers.
  Therapeutic or treatment vaccines
  They stimulate the immune system to attack cancer in specific locations. These vaccines are directly injected into the bladder that signal immune cells to attack cancer cells.

• Cytokines
  These protein molecules regulate the immune system and help target cells causing the tumor. They signal the immune system to launch an attack acting as messengers. The following are two cytokines used in immunotherapy:
  Interleukin-2 (IL-2)
  It is naturally produced in the body and fights infections to prevent autoimmune diseases. It targets adaptive immune cells and encourages them to respond to tumors and destroy them. Interferon-alpha
  It is one of the most important proteins that attack viruses and bad bacteria. It encourages the body to produce inborn immune cells that specifically attack unhealthy cells including cancer cells.

While immunotherapy ranks top among the treatment methods for oral cancer, it causes the immune cells to attack the healthy cells too. This leads to side-effects like fatigue, diarrhea, nausea, and other common symptoms. Opt for nutrition therapy or naturopathic therapy to reduce the side-effects and enhance the quality of life.