Sponsored walk screening drive has impact

The Mouth Cancer Foundation provided free mouth cancer screening to the public at the annual Mouth Cancer 10km Awareness Walk on Saturday 17th September 2011.

The specialist screening team was provided by the Department of Community Special Care Dentistry, King's College, London and lead by members of the Oral Medicine Department of the Eastman Dental Institute.
 
On the day, 77 people were screened and 19 were advised to see a dentist or a doctor for referral to a specialist for further investigation.
 
Of the 19 people who were referred four were smokers and drinkers, 13 were non smokers, but drinkers and two were non-smokers and non-drinkers.
 
The founder of the Mouth Cancer Foundation, Dr Joshi, said: 'A common story many mouth cancer patients can relate to is that they were diagnosed late. Screening and early diagnosis dramatically increases survival rates.

'There are many particularly obvious signs and symptoms mouth cancer patients have which are often overlooked by GPs and GDPs because of their lack of awareness of the disease. The public needs to be aware of mouth cancer, too. The screening our specialist team provides at the Walk is something all dentists should be doing daily.'
 
For more information visit the Mouth Cancer Foundation at www.mouthcancerfoundation.org.