I was advised a biopsy for the upper lip mucocele. Is it fine?

Question

Hello doctor,

I have what seems like an oral mucocele in my upper inner lip. I went to the dentist, and after looking at it, he said that it is most likely it is mucocele and referred me to the oral surgeon. He explained that they would remove it and send it in for a biopsy.

That alone slightly worried me. Is it normal for it to be biopsied? He would mention that it needs to be biopsied. Anything potentially cancerous concerns me.

It is not huge and sometimes feels bigger and sometimes feels smaller, depending on the day. I have had it for about three to four weeks now. It does not hurt. I have to wait for a week to go to the oral surgeon.

I want to get an oral surgeon's opinion to possibly ease my mind a bit.

Kindly suggest.

Answer 1

Hello,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

I understand your concern.

I am sorry for the problems you have. It is probably a mucocele. But as you and your dentist have some confusion, you should have sent a clear picture of it for my opinion. A mucocele is a salivary gland cyst that is commonly found on the lower lip.

It is a painless, soft, fluctuant fluid-filled swelling within 2 cm in size. It repeatedly reappears if ruptured. The treatment is surgical removal. A biopsy is the surgical removal of tissue for histopathological examination.

It is done to establish a diagnosis or to confirm a previously established diagnosis. After removing your mucocele, it is better to send it for histopathology to reconfirm the diagnosis or exclude other possibilities.

And you can be assured that there are many other pathologies other than cancer where a biopsy is indicated.

If you want to do a biopsy, that does not mean he is suspecting something like cancer. And if you have it for three to four weeks in the same size, it is not likely to be malignant. I would like to have a look at the lesion to conclude.

Please send me some pictures so that I can help you further with the diagnosis.

I hope this will help.

Thank you.

Answer 2

Hello,

Welcome back to icliniq.com.

I have seen the picture (attachment removed to protect patient identity). It is a mucocele. It is not so common on the upper lip, and I was also thinking of it. Probably it appeared due to chronic injury of the upper lip on that site by a sharp tooth.

It is likely due to the upper left canine, and it has a sharp, pointed end. You can consult your doctor about it. If the tooth is the cause, it can appear even after surgery or cause a traumatic ulcer.

In that case, the tooth should be ground to make it smooth. Please let me know if you have any other queries.

I hope this helps.

Regards.