Tower Hamlets Council Raises Awareness Of Mouth Cancer
Tower Hamlets Council has launched an initiative to raise awareness of mouth cancer in support of the British Dental Health Foundation’s Mouth Cancer Action Month campaign, which kicked off on Friday 1st November.
The council will be providing information and advice about mouth cancer throughout the month of November to try and reduce the number of cases of the disease, which has almost doubled in the last ten years.
Statistics from the British Dental Health Foundation show that more than 6,500 people are diagnosed in the UK every year and the number is rising year on year; figures also suggest that there has been a significant increase in the number of women, particularly those of Asian descent, affected by oral cancer and this is due to the popularity of smokeless tobacco leaves, including paan, in Asian communities.
Councillor Abdul Asad, cabinet member for health, said that smokeless tobacco is as dangerous for health as smoking cigarettes and encouraged people to take note of the causes of oral cancer this month. Giving up smoking halves the risk of oral cancer, as well as reducing the risk of a number of other forms of cancer, heart disease, respiratory illnesses and strokes.
Dr Somen Banarjee, director of Public Health Tower Hamlets, said that it’s very important that people are aware of the warning signs of oral cancer, which include red or white patches in the mouth, abnormal lumps or swelling and mouth ulcers or sores, which takes longer than 2-3 weeks to heal. Dr Banarjee also encouraged people to take a good look at their lifestyle choices; giving up smoking and cutting down on drinking can reduce the risk of mouth cancer by up to 75 per cent.
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