Funding for new oral cancer study in Bristol
An Academic Clinical Fellow from the University of Bristol has been awarded funding for a new oral cancer research study.
Holly Cole-Hawkins, from the School of Oral Health Sciences at the university has been awarded a Research Training Fellowship and funding worth £218,000 by the National Institute of Health Research (NIHR).
Holly’s PhD project, which is entitled ‘Survivorship in people with oral cancer and their partners- a mixed methods study’ will follow oral cancer survivors to determine what kind of support they get, how their condition affects their physical appearance and how the disease affects the dynamics of relationships with people close to them.
Holly, a Bristol graduate, hopes that the results of her study will be used to introduce new interventions to enable better support for people who have survived oral cancer.
The study is important, as oral cancer rates are increasing and public awareness of the disease is still relatively low. Oral cancer kills more people than testicular and cervical cancer combined but many people are still unaware of the symptoms they should be looking out for. The fact that many people are avoiding regular dental check-ups due to cost is also a concern, as dentists are able to identify the early signs of oral cancer and then the individual can be treated before the condition becomes more advanced.
Join this Discussion