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Mouth Cancer Action Month

06-11-2020

Mouth Cancer Action Month!

As many of you may be aware, November is the month each year where we celebrate “Mouth Cancer Action”, a fantastic charity that is dedicated to raising awareness of​ oral cancer, as well as other supporting charities and research on oral cancer. This month has been a pillar stone in many individual’s lives for research, charity campaigns, saving lives and many more amazing things!

Here at Oxford House ​Dental Practice, we ​are passionate about supporting causes for ​the research and support towards oral cancer and other charities. We’ve always prided ourselves on engaging with our local community and patients and utilising social media to make sure we reach people. Our Team believe that we should use our platform to relay the message of just how important it is to support and take care of one another.

We want to pass on our expertise to all of our lovely patients and followers at home throughout lockdown on how you can keep well and check the inside of your mouth! For information on how to do this, check out this really useful article on our website here:  https://www.mkdentist.co.uk/articles/mouth-cancer-action/

2020 has certainly been an unusual year for everybody across the globe, however, a positive that we can all appreciate is the level of community spirit that has arisen as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. That’s why we urge everybody to join us in supporting this brilliant charity this month in their fight against Oral Cancer. To take part in fundraising and supporting the charity in a safe and covid-19 secure way we have some suggestions for you all:

How to get involved with Mouth Cancer Action!

• Organising a socially distanced event such as a sponsored walk or run to raise money for Mouth Cancer Action
• Volunteering to help with errands such as collecting food shopping for those who are suffering from Oral Cancer and are currently having to self-isolate for their own safety
• Bag yourself a blue ribbon! The Blue Ribbon Appeal has been participated by over 250,000 people over the last 3 years. Each Blue Ribbon only costs £1.00 each, with all funds going directly back into the charity. To get yours, follow this link here
• Understanding and recognising the signs and symptoms of oral cancer and being able to pass on this knowledge to others
• Being aware of the risk factors that can lead and attribute to Oral Cancer and taking careful steps to reduce these risks
• Visiting your dentist regularly to ensure that there are no new changes within your mouth that need to be investigated

Finally, if you wish to simply make a donation; however big or small you can do so here

That’s not all!

If you feel as though mouth cancer does not get enough recognition and you think something needs changing, then chances are there are other people who feel the same.

By working together, we can reduce the number of people whose lives are affected by mouth cancer!

Get social

Social media is one of the best places to start when it comes to raising awareness. The Blue Lip Selfie campaign returns this year and has already seen dental professionals getting involved. To take part in the campaign, simply wear blue lips and take a picture of your perfect pout (use #bluelipselfie when posting on social media).

On the 16th of November, dental professionals are being encouraged to partake in Blue Wednesday and don something blue – be it socks, hair bands or lipstick – and visit social media using the hashtag #mouthcanceraction. Look out for ours!

Blue ribbon

The Oral Health Foundation provides high-quality information and oral health educational products to health professionals across the UK.

To support Mouth Cancer Action Month, resources including blue ribbon pin badges, coasters, pens and posters are available. Visit the website at www.mouthcancer.org/ for more details.

Remember, this is a month of celebration as well!

Due to years of research, charity campaigns, and people coming together, there have been ample achievements from large organisations. Curing people of oral cancer and the survival rate has increased exponentially. The following statistics relate to people diagnosed in England between 2009 and 2013.

For mouth (oral cavity) cancer:

• 80% out of 100 people will beat cancer for a year or more!
• 55 out of 100 people (around 55%) will beat cancer for five years or more!
• 45 out of 100 people, (around 45%) will beat cancer for ten years or more!

For oropharyngeal cancer

• Around 85% of 100 people (around 85%) will beat cancer for a year after their diagnosis.
• Around 65 out of 100 (around 65%) will beat cancer for a year after their diagnosis.
• Around 60 out of 100 (around 60%) will beat cancer for a year after their first diagnosis.

For tongue cancer:

• Around 80 out of 100 people (80%) will beat their cancer for a year or more after diagnosis.
• Around 60 out of 100 people (60%) will beat their cancer for five years or more after diagnosis.
• Around 50 out of 100 people (50%) will beat their cancer for ten years or more after diagnosis.