The VELscope examination

It is a simple and painless procedure that improves the visualization of oral tissue abnormalities—including oral cancer—sometimes even before they can be detected with the naked eye.

The blue light from the VELscope stimulates natural fluorescence in the soft tissues of the mouth and allows you to see abnormalities that are not visible to the naked eye.

With the specialized light of the VELScope, it is easy to identify lesions and other indicators of oral cancer. Because of this, typical abnormal tissue will appear as an irregular, dark area that stands out against the normal, green fluorescent pattern of the healthy tissue around it.

If symptoms are detected during the VELscope examination, the doctor may perform a biopsy immediately to determine whether it is oral cancer. The biopsy results will dictate the best course of action from that point forward. Otherwise, in the absence of findings, it is recommended that another oral cancer screening test be performed within the next year. All of this is done to maintain continuous surveillance.