A closer look
Waking up to discover raised, white, lacy webs crawling across the inside of your cheeks is a deeply alarming sign that your immune system has gone rogue. Oral lichen planus is a chronic inflammatory disease where T-cells violently assault the mucous membranes of the mouth, causing excruciating burning sensations every time you eat spicy food. While the painful ulcers are bad enough, the real terror is the dark cloud of malignant transformation. Dentists must conduct relentless, lifelong surveillance on these lesions because a small percentage quietly mutate into oral squamous cell carcinoma, making your daily mouthwash routine a literal life-or-death inspection.
