Why do we have a month dedicated to increasing awareness of mouth cancer?
Because it's a big problem and a serious one.
Every year in the UK, more than 6000 new cases of mouth cancer are diagnosed. On average, a third of these die of the disease.
To save lives, we need to be aware that the problem exists and that it isn't rare. We need to know what to be suspicious of and if we see something we're not sure about, we need to get it checked. (That's why it's called Mouth Cancer ACTION Month. Awareness without action won't cure many cases.)
There is a common misconception that the only people at risk from mouth cancer are older people, especially men, who have smoked and drunk too much alcohol over a number of years.
The truth is that the proportion of women contracting the disease is rising steadily and young people are increasingly at risk from poor diets, alcohol abuse and exposure to Human Papilloma Virus (HPV).
If mouth cancer is detected early, the chance of survival is in excess of 90%. Without early detection, it drops to less than 1 in 2.
Tomorrow we'll look at the risk factors and causes of mouth cancer.
In the meantime, here are the things you should watch out for:
- Ulcers that do not heal with 3 weeks
- Red or white patches in the mouth
- Unusual lumps or swellings in the mouth
Finding one or more of these does not mean you have a serious problem and there could be another cause - but you need to find out. Please don't ignore anything you think is unusual.
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