13 April 2022

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April is oral cancer awareness month

Katherine E. Pfaff

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More than two decades ago, the Oral Cancer Foundation declared April as the month for awareness of oral and oropharyngeal cancer. If detected and treated at early stage, a patient’s outcome is improved and the diseases may be survivable.   

More than 50,000 cases of oral cancer are diagnosed in America each year and about 43% of those patients will not live past 5 years. Patients also often deal with disfiguring effects or impaired ability to eat and speak. Outcomes are dire because few patients are diagnosed until later stages, making screening and early detection important. 

In the organization’s 23rd annual oral cancer awareness month, the Oral Cancer Foundation is joined by several other groups to raise consciousness of the condition and hopefully encourage patients to undergo screening. OCF is collaborating with the Academy of General Dentistry Foundation, the American Academy of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology, American Academy of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology, the American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons, the American Academy of Oral Medicine, the American Academy of Periodontology, the American College of Prosthodontics, the American Dental Hygienists' Association, the Canadian Dental Hygienists' Association, and the California Dental Hygienists' Association.

Under OCF’s Check Your Mouth program, patients are encouraged to see an oral care professional for screening and alert them if they have any symptoms: sore ulcer lasting longer than 2 weeks; black, red, or white spots in mouth; tissue that easily bleeds if touched; lump in the mouth or tongue, raised tissue; sore under denture that is not improved after adjustment of dentures; and lump on the neck for more than 2 weeks. Risk for the disease increases with tobacco and excessive alcohol use. 

Oropharyngeal cancer is linked to HPV and is identified by symptoms of: sore throat or hoarse voice for more than a few weeks; unilateral swollen tonsil; lump on the neck for more than 2 weeks; ongoing cough for several days; unilateral ear ache; and trouble swallowing.

Source: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/april-is-oral-cancer-awareness-month-301512412.html