Free tests for the detection of head and neck cancers, e.g. cancer of the mouth, throat and larynx, will be conducted throughout Poland. The preventive campaign was organized as part of the XNUMXth European Week of Head and Neck Cancer Prevention that is now consuming.
In the coming months – in January 2018 at the latest – the National Program of Primary Prevention and Early Detection of Head and Neck Tumors will also be launched, under which approx. 71 thousand people will be screened for these diseases throughout the country. those at risk or with certain distressing symptoms that persist for more than three weeks. These include burning of the tongue, sore throat, chronic hoarseness, pain when swallowing or difficulty swallowing, non-healing mouth ulcers (but also white or red patches), nasal congestion or bloody runny nose, and a lump in the neck.
According to prof. Wojciech Golusiński, creator of the National Program for the Prevention of Head and Neck Cancer, if any of these symptoms persist for more than three weeks, we should see a GP or a specialist. People who abuse alcohol or tobacco, or who abuse alcohol or tobacco and neglect their oral health, are at risk.
In recent years, it has also turned out that an important risk factor for these cancers is infection with the human papillomavirus – HPV. It contributes to the greatest extent to cancers of the mouth and throat. It is estimated that in the US even 70 percent. cases of these diseases are associated with HPV infection. In Poland, it may be approx. 30 percent. This is probably the result of changes in sexual practices, including the spread of oral sex.
Experts emphasize that early head and neck cancers can be cured in 80-90 percent. patients. Meanwhile, in Poland, more than 60 percent. patients are diagnosed in the advanced stage, and half of the patients die within three years of diagnosis.
Dr. Sławomir Okła, head of the Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery of the Świętokrzyskie Cancer Center, gave the example of tongue cancer during a press meeting. If it is detected in stage II or IV, it can only be cured in 10%. patients, while in the initial stages this percentage is 80-90%. Treatment of the disease in the advanced stage causes such complications as: loss of speech, loss of communication, disturbances in the functions of the basic sensory organs, and facial distortions.
Specialists hope that the National Program of Primary Prevention and Early Detection of Head and Neck Tumors, which prof. Golusiński. It was created thanks to cooperation with representatives of the Ministry of Health and the National Health Fund, with the use of European structural funds.
As part of the 20th European Week of Head and Neck Cancer Prevention, free examinations will be available on September XNUMX in several centers all over Poland. The full list of points is available here.