What is oral lichen planus? Will it become cancerous?

  ”Oral lichen planus is a common chronic mucosal disease of the skin, unlike ringworm and tinea pedis, which are not caused by fungi and are generally not contagious. Oral lichen planus occurs in middle-aged women, and it is generally believed that its onset is related to mental factors such as fatigue, anxiety, and nervousness, and some people believe that it is related to immune disorders in the body.  Patients with oral lichen planus usually have no conscious symptoms, some patients may have a sense of mucosal roughness, woody and astringent, burning sensation, and local sensitivity and burning pain is obvious when stimulated by spicy, hot, sour or salty taste. The clinical manifestations of oral lichen planus are mainly white papules, streaks, plaques, blisters, congestion, vesicles and other damages in the oral mucosa area; the lesions of streaks and plaques rarely have painful symptoms, while the lesions of congestion and vesicles, patients mostly have painful symptoms. The treatment measures of oral lichen planus should firstly change personal bad habits, to live a regular life, limit smoking, alcohol and stimulating diet such as chili, raw onion, raw garlic, etc., pay attention to oral hygiene, remove local irritants such as bad restorations, tartar, soft tartar and keep the oral cavity clean. The main purpose of treatment is to eliminate the damage of erosion in the oral cavity, relieve the painful symptoms when eating, and prevent further expansion of the lesion or cancer. Whether oral lichen planus is cancerous or not is an issue of great concern to both doctors and patients. At present, it is generally believed that lichen planus is precancerous and its cancer rate is much lower than that of oral mucosal leukoplakia, which is about 0.4%. Therefore, patients with oral lichen planus do not need to worry too much, as long as they actively treat and pay attention to the whole body regulation and regular review, it can be prevented from becoming cancerous.