An oral cancer screening is quick, easy, and painless. Dr. John Greene, a former dean at University of California at San Francisco Dental School, examined 141 professional baseball players during spring training. It was reported that Curt Schilling, an excellent pitcher, quit using snuff after a dangerous lesion was detected in his mouth. During a biopsy, a sample of the lesion is removed to determine if the cells are cancerous. Cancerous lesions may be treated using a combination of surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation.
Oral cancer can spread to the lymphatic system.
However, oral cancer can also be successfully treated if it is detected early. Some players claim that chew enhances their athletic performance. However, Robertson et al. However, they did determine that the use of smokeless tobacco is correlated with the presence of oral lesions. Smokeless tobacco has been banned by all youth baseball leagues, the National Collegiate Athletic Association and all of Major League Baseball's minor league clubs.