New Project Aims to Improve Head and Neck Cancer Care
A new project is aiming to equip future dentists with knowledge, information and practical skills to enable them to offer high standards of care to head and neck cancer patients.
The project, which is running at the Plymouth University Peninsula Schools of Medicine and Dentistry, has mutual benefits for students and patients as it offers training for student dentists and provides access to resources for local patients who have been diagnosed with head and neck cancer. As part of the project, the students have created an accessible resource that enables patients to share their stories and get together with others in a similar situation and gain access to better standards of post-operative dental treatment.
The project is part of the Inter-Professional Engagement scheme, which encourages students to work with groups and individuals in the community as part of their degree programme. The scheme is supported by the university in conjunction with Peninsula Social Enterprise, the Diving Diseases Research Centre in Plymouth, local cancer charity FORCE, Plymouth Hospitals NHS Trust and Musgrove Park Hospital, Taunton.
The aim of the scheme is to ascertain how head and neck cancers affect people in terms of the emotional impact, the implications for their health and their ability to complete everyday tasks and to find effective ways for dentists to help as part of a multi-disciplinary team of health professionals. As part of the project, patients visited Diving Diseases Research Centre to determine the potential benefits of hyperbaric treatment, they linked up with the Mustard Tree Macmillan Centre, the head and neck cancer support team at FORCE, specialists in oncology and dry mouth treatment at Derriford Hospital and the oral health team at Musgrove Park.
The project culminated with the creation of PHANCS (Peninsula Head and Neck Cancer Support), a resource that enables patients to share their experiences via Facebook, learn more about oral cancer services in the local areas and find out about fast-track referral at Derriford Hospital.
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