Can smoking cause red and black patches in the mouth?

Question

Hello doctor,

I am a 22-year-old male, who weighs 90 kg and is 6 feet tall. I have had pain in my chest and dyspnea for the past four months. For the last ten days, I noticed black and red patches in my mouth. I use tobacco, so I am scared that I have cancer. The spots are present on both sides of my mouth and are paining. My cheek muscles pain and contract sometimes. I have an increased appetite. My mouth feels dry, and I have a bump on the back of my head. I consulted a doctor for my chest pain and dyspnea, four months back. Tests showed that my vitamin B12 was 54 pg/mL.

Please help.

Answer 1

Hi,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

The red and black patches which are painful are mostly oral ulcers. The blackish color should be the effect of the smoking habit. With the history you have given, I suspect it to be nicotine stomatitis, which is ulcers due to smoking. Vitamin B12 deficiency and stress are again a major cause of mouth ulcers. Please do not panic about relating it to oral cancer. You will be fine once you take vitamin supplements in the form of tablets or food. I recommend you eat a lot of green leafy vegetables like spinach and nuts rich in vitamin B12. Smoking will cause obvious dryness in the mouth, so please drink plenty of water and stay hydrated. For pain relief, apply Benzalkonium chloride 15 g thrice daily with a clean finger massage for 2 to 3 minutes, and wash off with normal water. Also, please quit smoking slowly. It will help you stay away from a lot of oral diseases.

I hope this helps.

Thank you.