New British Dental Health Foundation Study Suggests Shift in Public Attitude to Cancer

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A new study conducted by the British Dental Health Foundation suggests that people have a more positive response to cancer, with ‘beatable’ one of the most commonly linked words to cancer.

The study shows that many people believe that although cancer is a devastating disease, it can be beaten and the latest research shows that people have a different approach to cancer than in previous years. Although many admit that dealing with cancer is a frightening prospect, improving survival rates and better treatments give people hope that they can fight cancer in the event of being faced with a diagnosis.

The British Dental Health Foundation claims that the findings of the study mark a major step forward. Statistics from Cancer Research UK shows that survival rates have increased by around 50 percent in the last 40 years. However, Dr Nigel Carter OBE, chief executive of the BDHF, said there is a very long way to go when it comes to mouth cancer. Although survival rates have increased significantly for many forms of cancer, mouth cancer survival rates have stalled and the number of cases diagnosed in the UK has increased by more than a third in just 10 years.

Dr Carter said that the findings of the BDHF study were very positive, but underlined the importance of raising awareness of mouth cancer. Survival rates have not improved significantly in the last 20 years and this is largely due to the fact that most cases are diagnosed when cancer has already reached an advanced stage and treatment is less likely to be successful. Dr Carter encouraged dentists across the country to do as much as they can to encourage screening, raise awareness of symptoms and urge patients to attend regular dental appointments. He also asked the public to be more aware of changes in the mouth, such as lumps or swelling, difficulty swallowing, red or white patches or slow-healing sores and stressed the importance of regular routine check-ups.

 

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