General Dentistry
Cosmetic Dentistry
Mouth Cancer rises in the UK
December 30 2020
Mouth cancer is on the rise in the UK and is yet another deadly side effect of the pandemic. Figures released this week showed over eight million people are on the dental waiting list for an NHS dental appointment. This frightening figure is just another casualty of the pandemic, but one that could have catastrophic health effects. It is reported that around one in seven people in the UK are unable to access NHS treatment this Christmas. The Association of Dental Groups’ (ADG) study shows this equates to around 14% of the English population. The number of cancer-related procedures postponed due to coronavirus shows the extreme pressures that the health service is under.
Mouth cancer
A decade ago, most of us had no idea what oral cancer was or what the risk factors were. Fast forward another 10 years and mouth cancer rates have made a significant jump. Even pre-pandemic, cases of mouth cancer had risen dramatically in recent years, but post covid19 they are at worrying levels. It seems cases are going undetected due to missed appointments, and referrals have fallen 30% since the start of the pandemic. And, by allowing so many potential mouth cancers to go untreated, more people could lose their life to the disease. For this reason, the Oral Health Foundation is calling for quick action surrounding cancer diagnosis.
Private dental appointments
Due to the high NHS dental waiting list, many private dentists are seeing a rise in new patients. There has also been a rise in specialist treatments such as Smile Fast, Veneers and General Dentistry. Here at Newmarket Road Dental Practice, we pride ourselves on offering a wide range of dental treatments including mouth cancer screening. We conduct regular screenings on our patients for mouth cancer, even if they don’t exhibit any symptoms. We find this helps to detect the disease as early as possible.
Book an appointment with the leading Norwich cosmetic dentist today!
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