• 11/14/2005
  • United Kingdom
  • staff
  • LifeStyle Extra (www.lse.co.uk)

An increasing number of young Brits are being killed by mouth cancer because of their unhealthy lifestyles, including smoking and binge drinking, research revealed today.

Doctors are urging people of all ages to check their mouths more regularly in the fight against the number of mouth cancer deaths which can strike at any age.

The most common causes of mouth cancer are smoking and binge drinking and people who do both are 30 times more likely to develop the condition. Bad eating habits are also a contributory factor in causing the disease. In the UK over 4,300 new cases of mouth cancer are diagnosed annually with around 1,700 people dying every year.

Recent research shows that mouth cancer, once considered to be a condition that affected older men, has now become a more common worry for younger men and women.

Dr Nigel Carter, chief executive of the British Dental Health Foundation, said: “In the UK, mouth cancer kills a person every five hours and is no longer just older men who need to be worried about developing mouth cancer – the condition can strike anyone.

“Regular self-examination is now normal for breast cancer and testicular cancer, and it needs to be the same for mouth cancer.

“The most common cause of mouth cancer are smoking and drinking alcolhol to excess. People who both are 30 times more susceptible.

“Of course you can cut your risk considerably by leading a healthy lifestyle, so giving up smoking, cutting down on alcohol and eating a healthy diet is still very important.

“However, with one in four younger sufferers living healthily prior to developing the condition, the importance of self-examination cannot be underestimated.”

The ratio of women to men suffering from the cancer has grown by a third in the last 10 years, although males are still twice as likely to develop the condition. However, around 25 per cent of mouth cancer cases in young people present none of the common risk factors.

The warning is being issued by the Foundation in the run up to Mouth Cancer Awareness Week, which takes place between November 13 and 19. The campaign is uses the tagline ‘It Could Be You’ to warn all age groups of the potential risk.

The first sign of mouth cancer is normally a non-healing mouth ulcer or a red or white patch in the mouth.

Doctors recommend visiting the dentist as a precaution should you notice any changes in your mouth. Early detection significantly increases a person’s chances of survival.