BDHF Eager To Highlight Mouth Cancer Risk Ahead Of Annual Campaign
The British Dental Health Foundation has highlighted the growing risk of oral cancer ahead of the launch of the annual Mouth Cancer Action Month campaign, which will run throughout the month of November.
Dr Nigel Carter, chief executive of the BDHF said that there has been an increase in the number of cases of mouth cancer over the last decade and this trend is expected to continue. Experts predict that 65,000 cases of the disease will be diagnosed over the course of the next decade and many of those people will die as a result of late diagnosis.
This year’s campaign is accompanied by the tagline, ‘If in doubt, get checked out’ and the main message will be to encourage people to attend regular dental check-ups and to see their dentist if they notice symptoms of oral cancer, which include red or white patches in the mouth, lumps or swellings in the mouth or throat and sores that take a long time to heal. Dental practices also offer mouth cancer screening, which takes just five minutes and is completely painless.
At the moment many cases of oral cancer are diagnosed at a late stage, when symptoms are more severe and there is a risk that cancer may have spread to other parts of the body. Early diagnosis improves the chance of survival by up to 90 per cent and it is vital that people are aware of the risk factors, causes and symptoms of oral cancer so that they can see their dentist or doctor as soon as they notice the very early warning signs. The BDHF is working hard to try and raise awareness of mouth cancer and it is hoped that people will take note this November and visit their dentist for a check-up or screening test.
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