Irish Dentists Fear Mouth Cancer Death Rate Following PRSI Cuts

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Irish dentists are worried that the death rate for mouth cancer could increase as a result of budget cuts for the PRSI scheme.

The Health Service Executive announced budget cuts at the beginning of 2011 and people who are covered by the PRSI scheme have had their benefits reduced significantly. Participants in the scheme used to be entitled to a host of benefits, but most have been stripped away and dentists believe that most people are now cutting back on dental care because they cannot afford to pay for treatment.

Since the global recession hit in 2008 there has been a significant drop in the number of people making use of free oral cancer screening under the PRSI scheme. Figures suggest a fall of 30 per cent in cancer checks, which could have very serious implications for death rates, as oral cancer is difficult to treat at an advanced stage.

Dr Peter Gannon, a dentist from Galway, said that only 600,000 people had oral cancer checks last year, despite the fact that 3.3 million people are entitled to free screening. Dr Gannon believes that there is a great deal of confusion among medical card holders and people covered by the PRSI scheme, as entitlements have changed significantly in recent years and people are not sure what they entitled to. Fewer people are also going to the dentist as a result of budget cuts and financial difficulties and this has impacted upon screening numbers.

Dentists voiced their concern at the same time as promoting free screening checks as part of Mouth Cancer Awareness day, which is due to take place on Wednesday 19th September. Free screening tests will be available at more than 700 dental practices across the country, as well as Dublin and Cork University Hospitals.

The screening examination takes just five minutes and is completely painless, but it can make the difference between life and death; early detection and treatment increases the chance of survival considerably, but half of cases in Ireland are not diagnosed until an advanced stage.

 

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