British Dental Foundation Offers Free Kit To Combat Mouth Cancer

Main Category: Dentistry
Also Included In: Ear, Nose and Throat;  Cancer / Oncology
Article Date: 17 Oct 2008 - 2:00 PDT

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As the UK gears up for November's Mouth Cancer Action Week, free accompanying Blue Ribbon Badge Appeal kits are available for all.

Campaign organisers the British Dental Health Foundation urge dental practices, doctor's surgeries, health centres hospitals and pharmacies to claim their free kit before the campaign kicks off, November 16th-22nd.

The week-long focus on mouth cancer - a disease which kills one person every five hours in the UK - is a call for Action after four previous Awareness Weeks organised by the Foundation.

Blue Ribbon Badges are an important tool for helping raise awareness of the disease and its dangers amongst your patients.

Foundation Chief Executive Dr Nigel Carter BDS LDS (RCS) said: "Action can be as simple as setting up a Blue Ribbon Badge Appeal kit on your premises, or taking a few moments to discuss mouth cancer with patients.

"The kit is free, and by distributing badges we can help raise public consciousness of the disease.

"Five thousand people are diagnosed each year in the UK, and mouth cancer causes more deaths than both cervical cancer and testicular cancer combined. Yet one in five people remain unaware of the disease.

"It is up to all of us as health professionals to act on the front line against this killer, and ordering a kit can be jus the start."

Early detection of mouth cancer is vital - improving survival chances to more than 90 per cent - currently around 1,700 people die from the disease each year.

Easy-to-spot warnings signs include mouth ulcers that do not heal within three weeks, red or white patches in the mouth and unusual swellings or lumps within the mouth or neck.

Through sharing knowledge and awareness - which can be helped by giving all health staff a blue ribbon badge to wear during Action Week - early detection chances can improve.

Blue Ribbon Badge Kits include a free collection box and badges - which carry a suggested donation value of £1 each. There is no obligation on collections, and an Action week poster will be included.

To order your FREE kit, phone the Foundation on 0870 770 4000, email pr@dentalhealth.org, or visit the website www.mouthcancer.org.

Facts and Figures

-- In the UK over 4,750 are diagnosed each year.

-- Around 1,700 people die of mouth cancer every year.

-- Mouth cancer is more common in men than women, but the gap is closing Mouth cancer is more likely to affect people over 40 years of age, though an increasing number of young people are developing the condition.

-- Tobacco and alcohol are thought to contribute to 80 per cent of mouth cancer cases.

-- Smoking is the number one cause for mouth cancer. Cigarette smoke converts saliva into a deadly cell-damaging cocktail.

-- Switching to low-tar cigarettes will not help, as smokers of 'lights' tend to inhale more smoke than smokers of 'regular' cigarettes.

-- Although some people believe that chewing tobacco is safer than smoking, the reality is that it is even more dangerous. Chewing tobacco, paan, areca nut and gutkha are habits favoured by some ethnic groups.

-- Alcohol aids absorption of smoke into the mouth - people who smoke and drink alcohol to excess are 30 times more likely to develop mouth cancer.

-- Poor diet is linked to a third of all cancer cases. Evidence shows an increase in fruit and vegetables lowers the risk, as can fish and eggs.

-- It is recommended that people enjoy a healthy, balanced diet, including food from each of the major food groups and including fruit and vegetables of all different colours as each colour contains different vitamins

-- Research now suggests the human papilloma virus (HPV) - transmitted by oral sex - could soon rival smoking and drinking as a main cause of mouth cancer.

Early detection and treatment considerably increases survival chances, allows for simpler treatment and results in a better quality of life for sufferers

The Charity

The British Dental Health Foundation is the UK's leading oral health charity, with a 30-year track record of providing public information and influencing government policy. It maintains a free consumer advice service, an impartial and objective product accreditation scheme, publishes and distributes a wide range of literature for the profession and consumers.

National Smile Month runs each May, to promote greater awareness of the benefits of better oral health, with Mouth Cancer Action Week each November.

The Dental Helpline, which offers free impartial dental advice to consumers, can be contacted on 0845 063 1188 between 9am and 5pm, Monday to Friday or by e- mailing helpline@dentalhealth.org.uk.

http://www.dentalhealth.org.uk