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. Unfortunately, smokeless tobacco has not yet been banned from the American or National Baseball Leagues. The leagues do cooperate with the National Spit Tobacco Education Program to discourage children from using tobacco.