Recently Trending 'This Food' Causes Mouth Issues Leading to "Cancer Diagnosis"

Diagnosed with Oral Cancer After Frequent Huoguo Consumption in China

A Chinese woman who frequently enjoyed hot pot, a Chinese-style shabu-shabu called huoguo, has been diagnosed with cancer.

Hot Pot. Getty Images

Recently, Chinese local media such as Zhonghua Net reported that a woman in her 40s, Ms. Wang, who enjoyed huoguo so much that she ate it four times a week, developed unknown white spots all over her mouth and was diagnosed with oral cancer at a hospital. The unknown white spots that appeared in various parts of Wang's mouth gradually spread to the surface of her tongue, the inside of her cheeks, and her palate.

Thinking it was severe stomatitis, Wang visited the Second Hospital of Nanjing City, Jiangsu Province, China, where she was diagnosed with oral cancer. Shu Hanfeng, head of the Oncology Department at the Second Hospital of Nanjing City, Jiangsu Province, warned, "Spicy, hot, and irritating foods stimulate the mucous membranes inside the mouth, causing white lesions that can progress to cancer."

Human mouths can tolerate temperatures below 60 degrees Celsius, but Wang repeatedly exposed her oral mucosa to the hot huoguo, which can reach temperatures as high as 120 degrees Celsius. Chief Shu explained, "We treat about 100 oral cancer patients annually, and there are quite a few cases where not only smoking and drinking but also frequent consumption of huoguo is a contributing factor. When the oral mucosa is irritated, it thickens and becomes less sensitive to stimuli, leading to a vicious cycle of consuming hotter and more irritating foods."

Oral cancer is a type of cancer that occurs in the mouth, tongue, gums, cheeks, palate, jawbone, and other areas. It accounts for about 3-5% of all cancer cases, making it a rare cancer. In the early stages, oral cancer often has no pain or minimal symptoms, making it difficult to detect. Even when symptoms appear, they resemble stomatitis, so they are often overlooked.

In South Korea, the number of oral cancer patients is also increasing, requiring caution. According to the National Cancer Center's national cancer registry statistics, there were 4,371 new oral cancer patients in 2021, a 20.5% increase from 3,623 in 2016. By gender, 3,159 were men and 1,212 were women. Unlike stomatitis, which usually occurs when tired or immunocompromised and disappears within 1-2 weeks, oral cancer ulcers persist for 2-3 weeks. Other symptoms include persistent bleeding in specific areas of the mouth, sudden tooth loosening, continuous foreign body sensation in the mouth, numbness of the jaw or lips, pain around the teeth or jaw, and discoloration or pigmentation of the oral mucosa.

The exact cause of oral cancer is still unknown. However, factors such as smoking, alcohol consumption, human papillomavirus (HPV) infection, and, as in Ms. Wang's case, poor dietary habits and nutritional deficiencies are known to influence its development. To prevent oral cancer, it is necessary to maintain consistent oral hygiene and adopt habits of quitting smoking and drinking. Additionally, since wounds on damaged oral mucosa can also trigger oral cancer, regular check-ups are essential.