April is World Head and Neck Cancer month On Wednesday 24 April, Dr Abu-Eid and Dr Katie Hanna from the University of Aberdeen Institute Of Dentistry will travel to Shetland to co-host an Early Detection of Mouth Cancer Event at Islesburgh Community Centre.
There will be public mouth cancer drop-in screening clinics from 10am to 12.30pm in the morning and from 2pm to 4.30pm in the afternoon along with information and resources on mouth cancer for the general public to browse. Dr Abu-Eid and Dr Hanna also plan to deliver a very interesting and informative talk between 11am and noon about their work and about how the community can get involved. There is no need to book, just come along.
Following the success of the local Mouth Cancer Action Month campaign last November, NHS Shetland’s Public Dental Service has been working with the Institute of Dentistry at the University of Aberdeen in support of a Cancer Research UK funded study into the Early Detection of Mouth Cancer.
Despite increased public awareness of the signs and symptoms of mouth cancer, the five-year survival rate has unfortunately remained at approximately 50%. This is often linked to late diagnosis and associated poor treatment outcomes. The Aberdeen University research team are working on identifying markers that would help to improve the early detection of mouth cancer.
Additionally, colleagues from GP, Dental and Pharmacy services are invited to join in for a short CPD lunchtime learning session aimed at equipping primary care professionals with the knowledge skills to identify early clinical markers for oral cancer and gain better awareness of the diagnostic advances being made.
For more information about the event, please contact Angela Hopwood, Oral Health Improvement Nurse at NHS Shetland: angela.hopwood@nhs.scot or the Communications Team on 0300 3657167.
Cancer | Institute of Dentistry | The University of Aberdeen (abdn.ac.uk)
Mouth Cancer Facts and Figures | Mouth Cancer Foundation