Creating Smiles: Oral Cancer Facts & Stats

Oral Cancer Facts

An estimated 400,000 new cases of mouth cancer are diagnosed across the world every year.
Latest recorded figures show 6,236 people a year are diagnosed with oral cancer in the UK.
Out of these, two-thirds were in men and one-third in women.
Just under half of oral cancer cases are diagnosed in people aged 65.
Over half of those diagnosed survive beyond five years of diagnosis.
The lifetime risk of developing oral cancer in the UK is estimated to be 1 in 93 for men and 1 in 186 for women.
Chances of developing mouth cancer are around 130% higher for men living in more deprived areas compared with the least deprived, and 75% higher for women.
Within the European Union, the highest incidence rates are estimated to be in Hungary for men and the Netherlands, Denmark and Hungary for women.
The lowest European incidence rates for mouth cancer are in Cyprus and Greece for men and Romania for women.
South-Central Asia has the highest global incidence rates of mouth cancer.
Oral cancer caused 1,985 deaths in the UK in 2010.
Over two thirds of mouth cancer cases are detected at a late stage, reducing chances of survival.
Mouth cancer kills more people than cervical cancer and testicular cancer combined.
Oral cancer mortality rates in the UK are highest for Scottish men.
Tobacco use and drinking alcohol are the main risk factors and account for around three in four cases of mouth cancers.
People who both drink and use tobacco to excess are up to 30 times more likely to develop the condition.
Non-smokers who are exposed to second hand smoke at home or at work are two thirds more likely to develop the disease.
Mouth cancer is more likely to affect people over 40 years of age, though an increasing number of young people are developing the condition.
50 years ago mouth cancer was five times more common in men than women. Now it is only twice as common.
US studies relate the human papilloma virus (HPV) to more than 20,000 cancer cases in the past five years.
The possibility of mouth cancer remains higher for ex-smokers for 20 years or more after quitting when compared to non-smokers.
Only a third of people think mouth cancer is preventable.
Mouth cancer is ranked 9th out of 10 likely of cancers most likely to be supported. Breast cancer is ranked number one.
Four in five people don’t know the symptoms of mouth cancer.
Almost two-thirds don’t know if their dentists checks for mouth cancer.
One in five people from South East Asia say they have used smokeless tobacco.
While one in four from South East Asia say other members of their family use smokeless tobacco.
HPV is the least well known sexually transmitted disease.
Only one in 20 people (5%) know HPV is a cause of mouth cancer.
Over two-thirds of 12-16 year olds admit to drinking alcohol and one in seven have admitted to smoking.
87% of young people say they are aware of the harmful effects of drinking alcohol to excess.
One third of young people say they have not heard of mouth cancer.
Only 14 per cent of young people say they had ever received any educational material on mouth cancer.