One Year Ago Today. A Monday Morning. A Two Second Look. And Everything Changed.

Hey friends.

One year ago today was a Monday morning. July 28th, 2025.

I was rushing out the door to get to the office. Brian mentioned his tongue had been hurting. It was one of those moments where you are already half out the door in your head and you almost just say okay and keep moving.

I stopped.

I asked him to show me.

And what I saw in that moment stopped everything. Not just that morning. The entire year.

I found the lesion on his tongue standing in our kitchen before I left for work. As a dentist I knew immediately that something was not right. And I knew that if I had kept walking out that door we would not have found it when we did.

One Year Later

Brian has rung the bell. Radiation is done. We have cried more tears than I knew either of us had. We have leaned on this community in ways I never expected. And we have come out the other side of the hardest year of our lives with a level of gratitude that I do not have words for yet.

But today I do not want to talk about us. Today I want to talk about you.

Because what happened in our kitchen on a Monday morning one year ago is exactly why oral cancer awareness matters. And as a dental community we are uniquely positioned to make a difference in a way that almost nobody else can.

What I Need Every Dentist and Every Patient To Know

Oral cancer does not always look the way you think it will. It does not always announce itself. It does not always hurt right away. Sometimes it is a sore that will not heal. Sometimes it is a white or red patch. Sometimes it is a lump or thickening in the cheek or neck. And sometimes it is a tongue that has been hurting for a little while that someone almost does not mention because they do not want to make a big deal of it.

The most important things to know:

Oral cancer is one of the most common cancers in the United States and the survival rate drops significantly when it is caught late. When caught early the survival rate is over 80%. When caught late it drops to around 20%.

Risk factors include tobacco use, heavy alcohol use, HPV, and prolonged sun exposure to the lips. But oral cancer can and does occur in people with none of these risk factors. Brian is proof of that.

For the dentists reading this:

You are often the first line of defense. Oral cancer screenings should be part of every single appointment. Every single patient. Every single time. Not just the ones who smoke. Not just the ones who drink. Every single one.

Do a visual exam. Check the floor of the mouth. The sides of the tongue. The soft palate. The tonsils. The back of the throat. Feel for lumps in the neck. And if something does not look right refer immediately. Do not wait. Do not watch and see. Refer.

For the patients reading this:

If something in your mouth does not feel right tell your dentist. Even if you think it is nothing. Even if it has only been there for a little while. Even if you are running late on a Monday morning and you almost do not mention it.

Mention it.

After Brian's diagnosis I made a TikTok showing people how to check themselves for oral cancer at home. It went viral. And then Newsweek picked it up.

At the time we did not yet know the full extent of what Brian was facing. We did not know about the surgeries. The chemotherapy. The radiation. The months that were coming.

But I made that video because I kept thinking about how many people have something going on in their mouth right now that they have not mentioned to anyone. And I thought if I can teach even one person what to look for maybe it makes a difference.

It still does. Maybe even more so now.

👉 NEWSWEEK ARTICLE LINK HERE

That video and that article are still out there and I would love for you to share them with anyone you think needs to see them. Because awareness is everything. And early detection saves lives. We are living proof of that.

Resources Worth Knowing

The Oral Cancer Foundation is one of the best resources available for both patients and providers. You can find them at oralcancerfoundation.org

The American Cancer Society has a full guide on oral cavity and oropharyngeal cancer at cancer.org

If you are a dentist and want to learn more about incorporating oral cancer screenings into your practice the Oral Cancer Foundation has provider resources available on their website.

This Week On The Making Of 🎙️

Listen To The Full Episode On

Spotify Podcasts / Apple Podcasts

This week Collin and I get into the equipment decisions behind Smile & Co. #2. The chairs. The delivery system. The sterilization setup. The assistant package. And the filter I use for every single equipment decision I make.

If you can justify either the patient experience or whether or not it makes your job more enjoyable, more efficient, and more profitable, it is worth the cost.

It is a shorter one but it is packed. Link above.

With so much love and gratitude for this community. 💛

Dr. Ashley Joves

Find me @ashleyjovesdds / @themaking.of / www.themakingofpodcast.com

P.S. Don’t forget to leave a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts—it helps other dentists find us and fuels this mission we believe in so deeply.