• 11/25/2004
  • West Linton, UK
  • no attribution
  • BBC News

A man who lost his 22-year-old son to mouth cancer will speak to Scottish dental students about the importance of spotting the disease at an early stage. Mike Walton lost his son Ben to oral cancer in 1995 and will speak at the University of Dundee on Wednesday.

Dentists are the most likely to spot the condition when checking teeth. Students at the dental school donated £1,000 raised at an auction for the Ben Walton Trust, established by his father after his death.

Mr Walton, from West Linton, Peeblesshire, first contacted the university when he spotted a paper by its resident Professor Graham Ogden on oral cancer.

Cancer awareness

The pair now work together on the Scottish Oral Cancer Action Group. The fifth-year students he will be speaking to are currently studying oral cancer.

After the students’ auction, Mr Walton decided to give the money back to the dental school for a discretionary fund used to support patients with mouth cancer.

He said: “I am delighted to have this working relationship with the dental students in Dundee.

“It is great that these young people are raising awareness of mouth cancer and are studying to help others that may be affected by the disease.

“Mouth cancer is a very difficult area to raise funding for.

“The disease is not well-known despite the numbers affected by it.”

Mr Walton said survival rates for the cancer were not as good as for other forms of the disease. Mouth cancer is increasing faster than any other major cancer. He added: “Because oral cancer affects the centre of the face, patients have problems with communication and self-awareness that can make them reluctant to draw attention to themselves and the cancer.”

Oral cancer affects more than 4,300 people annually in the UK with more than 1,700 cases proving fatal. Incidences are increasing faster than any other major cancer – on average, 50% of patients will survive five years.

Smokers and drinkers – and those in the over-40 age group – are particularly at risk, although the incidence of the cancer is increasing among younger people. It is approximately twice as high in men as in women. Early detection and rapid treatment is vital and can improve the outcome from 50% survival to nearer 90%.