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Most people don’t know nearly as much as they should about oral cancer.
Roughly 70 percent of adults don’t know about the symptoms of mouth cancer and only 3 percent knew that kissing may increase your risk of mouth cancer because of possible exposure to the human papilloma virus. The information comes from the SimplyHealth Annual Dental Health Survey, which took the information from nearly 12,000 adults.
Many people know that smoking and drinking raised the risk of oral cancer but many didn’t know the link between oral cancer and HPV. According to some studies, there are strains of HPV that increase the risk of mouth cancer.
There were only 28 percent of the people surveyed that had even discussed mouth cancer with their dentist. This is a major problem, considering dentists would be the first people to diagnose any type of oral cancer, in most cases.
Many of the common symptoms associated with mouth cancer are swelling or types of lumps in the mouth or throat, and sores or ulcers that take a while to heal. If a person notices any of these signs, it’s essential to visit the dentist as soon as possible.
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