( CNN ) -- Pat Folsom , 54 , knows the importance of preventive medicine . As a health care worker , she goes for scheduled checkups . So when she went in for a routine dental exam last year , she did n't expect more than a cleaning , maybe a filling . But her dentist found something more serious . `` She told me I had a lesion on my cheek and that it needed to be checked , '' Folsom said . `` After a lot of tests , they found it was oral cancer . '' Folsom was surprised . `` I thought surely this was a mistake . I never smoked , I never drank heavily , and I never had a family history of this . How could this be ? '' she asked . About 34,000 new U.S. cases of oral cancer are diagnosed each year , and the numbers are rising , according to the Oral Cancer Foundation . Although oral cancer has primarily been a man 's illness , affecting six men for every woman , the foundation says that over the past 10 years , that ratio has become two men to each woman . The foundation attributes the rise to the increase in the number of women who smoke and drink excessively , because both tobacco and alcohol trigger oral cancer . But there is another factor . In some cases , women are being found to have oral cancer caused by HPV , or the human papillomavirus ( version 16 ) . Different versions of HPV are present in most cases of cervical cancer . Like cervical cancer , in oral cancer cases , the virus is transferred through sexual activity . Watch more on the HPV-oral cancer link . Based on recent data , the Oral Cancer Foundation believes in people under the age of 50 , HPV may even be replacing tobacco as the primary cause of the spread of oral cancer . Folsom was shocked when she heard her cancer contained HPV cells . `` I said , 'What ? How is that possible ? ' `` she exclaimed . `` But doctors told me that it might have been caused by something I did , years and years ago . It could actually show up later and cause the cancer . '' MayoClinic.com : Mouth cancer . HPV causes irregular cells to multiply , The virus thrives in a moist , dark environment , said Dr. Youssef Obeid , a prosthodontist and director of Obeid Dental in Bethesda , Maryland . Prosthodontists specialize in tooth replacement , jaw restructuring , disease and injuries to the mouth . `` The mouth is a perfect place for it to grow . '' By transferring the virus during oral sex , it stays in the mouth and causes lesions . Many eventually turn cancerous . `` It 's something we are very much aware of and look for , especially in women , '' he said . Folsom was lucky . Her dentist caught the cancer before it spread , a fact that Folsom attributes to her biannual checkups . When found early , oral cancer patients have an 80 to 90 percent survival rate . A good dentist will look for possible signs of oral cancer by checking the cheeks , the tongue , the tonsils and the larynx for possible lesions , says the American Dental Association . `` That 's why we ask the patients simple things , to move your tongue , move it sideways , stick your tongue out , say ahhh , '' Obeid said . ' '' We want to get a good view of the mouth . '' MayoClinic.com : HPV infection . Since Folsom 's cancer was diagnosed in March 2008 , she 's undergone surgery and has had about four months of radiation . She is still in rehabilitation to help her chew and open her mouth wider . She uses a mouth exerciser that helps her stretch the muscles that were affected by her operation . She also went through rehab when she broke her collarbone after her radiation treatments , because her bones had become so brittle . `` It just snapped one day , '' she said with a shrug . `` That 's part of the side effects from the radiation . It affects your bones . '' Her other side effects are minor . She constantly has dry mouth and carries water with her everywhere . She avoids anything spicy or acidic , because it can sting the area where the cancer was removed . She lost almost 50 pounds after the surgery because she could n't eat . In some ways she considers the weight loss a good thing because it also reduced her high blood pressure and she was able to drop that medication . `` For everything , there is a blessing , '' she said . Although Folsom is cancer free now , she said she is considering enrolling in a trial that uses a form of the HPV vaccine to prevent patient 's oral cancer from recurring . MayoClinic.com : Chewing tobacco : Not a safe alternative to cigarettes . `` It 's been a long road to recovery . But I am very fortunate . I 've had great treatment and great care , '' she said . `` But the most important thing is I want women to be aware of oral cancer and make sure they do n't ignore a sore in their mouth , or pain . It could be something , '' Folsom said . `` And it needs to be checked out . That checkup can save your life . ''
About 34,000 new U.S. cases of oral cancer diagnosed annually ; numbers are rising . Comment: Human papillomavirus also sometimes a cause . When found early , oral cancer patients have an 80 to 90 percent survival rate .