This post strays a bit from the theme of creativity, love and happiness because it’s about oral cancer, a little-known yet deadly cancer that strikes about 34,000 people a year and kills 7,500. Yet in my mind, any media coverage of oral cancer is happiness because that means more people will pay attention to it and more will take preventative measures to make sure it doesn’t affect them.
A recent USA Today article gives a rundown of Brian Hill’s oral cancer. Brian is the founder of the Oral Cancer Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to bringing people together who’ve battled oral cancer and educating those who know nothing about it. Having USA Today give a voice to oral cancer is a huge step in the right direction. I’ve worked on behalf of Delta Dental of Michigan, Ohio and Indiana for almost a year now to call attention to this silent killer and encourage the media to help people understand that oral cancer is just as prominent as breast, ovarian or prostate cancer. Slowly but surely we’re starting to make some ground, but in theme of this blog, I was extremely happy to see a popular pub like USA Today call attention to oral cancer.
Check out the story for signs and symptoms of oral cancer and how dentists should check you for it. You can also check out Delta Dental’s newsroom for some very informative news releases distributed during National Oral Cancer Awareness Week, April 16-22, 2007. After the holidays we’ll be gearing up for 2008’s NOCAW, and I have high hopes that more people will take notice of this cancer before the “those affected” number skyrockets.