Dentists in an Ideal Position to Spot Oral Cancer Signs
Regular dental visits could play a major role in improving oral cancer survival rates, as dentists are in an ideal position to spot the early warning signs of the disease.
Currently, most cases of oral cancer are diagnosed at an advanced stage, when treatment is less likely to succeed and dentists and health experts are eager to raise awareness of oral cancer and encourage people to visit their dentist for regular check-ups.
Professor Stephen Porter, from University College London Eastman Dental Institute, said that dentists are ideally placed to spot the warning signs of oral cancer but patients must take the responsibility of attending regular check-ups to allow them to do their job properly. As primary care providers with expertise in studying the mouth, dentists can play a vital role in the fight against oral cancer.
Professor Porter said that oral cancer is often preceded by signs, such as red or white painless patches in the lining of the mouth and dentists can identify these and arrange for treatment as early as possible. If mouth cancer is diagnosed early, the survival rate can be up to 90 percent higher.
Research carried out by the British Dental Health Foundation revealed that 81 percent of people were unaware of the symptoms of mouth cancer and this has contributed to relatively slow improvement in survival rates compared to other forms of cancer. The BDHF is currently running a national campaign, Mouth Cancer Action Month, to raise awareness of the disease and encourage people to attend screening checks.
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