Mouth Cancer Action Month

05.12.09

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During November, NHS Ayrshire & Arran's Dental Health Promotion Teams were out and about in Ayrshire and Arran to put together awareness of Mouth Cancer Action Month.

In the UK mouth cancer is diagnosed in more than 5,000 people annually and leads to the deaths of almost 2,000 people each year - one downfall every five hours.

The campaign featured the tagline 'If in doubt, get checked out' which urged the universal to visit their dentist for oral screening. Professional check-ups and regular self-examinations are the first way to detect early signs of mouth cancer. Early diagnosis saves lives, improving survival chances from decent half of cases to more than 90 per cent. Early warning signs include ulcers which do not rejuvenate in three weeks, red and white patches in the mouth and unusual changes in the mouth.

Source: Cumnock Chronicle