A sharp rise in deaths from mouth cancers over the last decade is linked to a decline in access to NHS dentists, patients and oral health campaigners have said.
More than 3,000 people in England died from mouth cancer in 2021, compared with 2,075 in 2011, according to figures by Oral Health Foundation (ORF) first reported by the BBC, representing an increase of 46%.
The ORF, Toothless in England (TIE), a group that campaigns for free dentistry, and the British Dental Association (BDA) said the rise was a direct result of cuts to NHS dentistry.
The number of active NHS dentists in England is at its lowest level in a decade, according to figures released earlier this year by the BDA. It found that 23,577 dentists carried out NHS work in the 2022-23 financial year, down by more than 1,100 on the pre-pandemic level and the lowest number since 2012-13, and that up to 90% of practices were not accepting new NHS patients.
Nigel Carter, chief executive of the ORF, said: “With access to NHS dentistry in tatters, we fear that many people with mouth cancer will not receive a timely diagnosis.”
TIE said on its social media channels: “We have repeatedly warned about mouth cancer deaths rising exponentially as access to NHS dentistry is further denied. Over 3,000 people died from the disease in 2021. Routine checkups save lives. We demand an NHS dentist for everyone!”
In a post on X, formerly Twitter, the BDA said: “Oral cancer claims more lives than car accidents. But NHS dentistry is still waiting on a promised recovery plan.”
Ray Glendenning, 64, a jaw tumour patient, told the BBC he had to get a private diagnosis after being turned down by several NHS dentists.
His plight was raised at prime minister’s questions earlier this year when his MP, Mary Foy, said Glendenning might not have survived if he could not have afforded a private dentist.
“We’re lucky we could afford to pay. People that don’t have £50 could be dead,” Glendenning told the BBC.
He added: “There was an NHS dentist taking on NHS patients – but there were 800 people on the waiting list … It’s the system that’s broken.”
Stephen O’Rahilly, director of the metabolic diseases unit at the University of Cambridge, tweeted: “A ‘canary in the coalmine’ of how well we are looking after the health of UK citizens? 46% inc. in mortality from oral cancer in a decade in UK! Unlikely to be a change in incidence as smoking is decreasing. So likely entirely driven by late diagnosis.”
The Department of Health and Social Care said an increased in NHS dental care since the pandemic meant progress was being made.
It told the BBC: “The NHS is also treating more people for cancer at an earlier stage than ever before and we have opened 127 community diagnostic centres to speed up checks, including for cancer.”
