VELscope uses light to detect oral cancers

We're not too fond of trips to the dentist, for all the obvious reasons (plus the fact that we still can't get the image of Steve Martin as the sadistic tooth-ripper in "Little Shop of Horrors" out of our head). But if more tools like the VELscope come onto the market, we may just start checking in with the DDS more frequently. The device, developed by LED Dental in Vancouver, uses fluorescent light that hones in on tissues that glow when abnormal cells show up. That can give the dentist an edge in fighting cancers early on, before they progress too far. The device isn't on the market yet, but is expected to sell for about $5,000 when it's released. Now if they can just find a way to replace those drills with a similar tool, we're all set.

[Stanley Shih @ Apr 13th 2006 2:03PM]

There are a few non-invasive light-based oral cancer detection systems in development and it will be exciting if they pass FDA muster.

"...can give the dentist an edge in fighting cancers..."
Slight tweak on your report: Dentists are probably your best bet for catching oral cancer early, but for treatment (early or late) one would go to an oncologist...

In any case, stop smoking and stop using your SKOAL.

[Ryan @ Apr 13th 2006 2:31PM]

Actually, they do have something like this instead of a drill...when I had a cavity filled a month ago, the dentist used a laser that killed the decay. No novacaine was necessary, as the laser temporarily sedated the nerve in my tooth. Aside from a strange burning taste, it was very easy and relatively painless.

[Earl @ Apr 13th 2006 6:13PM]

Now, I havent fully RTFA, but is that not simelar to

http://www.hackaday.com/entry/1234000687073613/

[karmaghost @ Apr 13th 2006 6:45PM]

Ryan,

Are you sure that's what he was doing with that laser? My one and only cavity was pretty shallow, so I didn't need novacane when the dentist drilled at my tooth. Then the good doctor busted out a laser, which he used to solidify the photo-reactive filling he used to close up the hole in my tooth. Perhaps that's what your dentist was actually doing.

[Aly Sergie @ Apr 14th 2006 4:36AM]

Sorry to break it to you guys but this is a terrible waste of time and money. There's a few expressions that we have in dentistry regarding oral cancer/biopsy of the like - "There's nothing that heals like steel".... and "To cut is to cure". Some might think that sounds barbaric. There are a few other lights on the market that are supposed to inform dentists if there are "abnormal cells" They don't work and can't confirm anything. The only thing that definitively lets you know if you have anything premalignant or carcinoma-in-situ is an incisional or excisional biopsy - hence the above mentioned expressions. Trust me - you wouldn't want your dentist to need to have use a special light to recognize a deadly disease. We've taken about 500 hours of oral pathology in dental school alone and if your dentist doesn't know how to diagnose the most recognizable and deadly form of oral cancer, you should probably stop going to Monarch and go to a reputable dentist....

Ryan - you did in fact have a laser used on you to ablate the carious tissue (cavity). It's pretty sweet technology - your dentist paid from 50-80G's for that machine...

Karma - you had something different. You dentist used a drill to burr out your cavity. It was shallow enough that he didn't go into the sensitive dentin area. He filled your tooth with a white filling called composite and turned the composite from a putty into a solid using a curing light that displays visible light in the 430nm spectrum, which happens to be blue.

Take care of your teeth you Red Bull pounding freaks!!!!

[Simon @ Apr 19th 2006 1:11PM]

#5. Aly

As an Oral Pathologist who teaches undergraduates and residents AND who knows the individuals who developed this device I can tell you that it can be a benefit even to clinicians with trained eyes. I'm speaking from experience here... where did you get your information?

To cut is not always to cure even if the margins are clear. If you are as knowledgeable as you want us to believe you will understand the concept of field of cancerization as it affects the floor of the mouth and you will understand how genotypic changes can be present even in the absence of phenotypic changes or minimal phenotypic changes.

This device is used to diagnose PREmalignant changes at the earliest stage of altered maturation.

Simon

[Jerold Wilck @ Apr 22nd 2006 4:56PM]

As a practicing dentist, and an oral cancer survivor, I am very excited about the potential use of the Velscope for me as well as for my patients. I have to agree with Simon. Even the most well trained dentist can use help in spotting oral cancer. My lesion was visible to the naked eye, on the lateral border of my tongue and it did not look like any lesions that I had ever seen in a book!

Squamous cell carcinomas come in many shapes and sizes and may be difficult to spot or diagnose. I'm sure that if the light works as the manufacturer says it does, no dentist using it would make a final diagnosis without a biopsy. I think, Aly, that it is unfair of you to dismiss this device based upon other lights not working.

Jerry

[Aly @ Jun 29th 2006 12:20AM]

I'm sure that medgadget, if it had been around then, would have been showcasing the highlights of the other lights of this nature. We'll talk in five years if this product makes it. I'll owe you an apology with interest if it does....