A sore throat, a painful tongue and difficulty chewing: The 10 little-known symptoms of oral cancer that are often dismissed as harmless

emmymmile234567 · 11/7/2017 6:40 AM EST

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Having a sore throat isn't something you're likely to be too concerned about.

But adults with prolonged pain and raspy voices should be aware that it could be a sign of something much more sinister, dentists have warned.

Dr - Rhona - Eskander - Dr - Anna

Dr Rhona Eskander and Dr Anna Cantlay have stressed that persistent sore throats could be one of the lesser well known symptoms of mouth cancer.

Instead of relying on honey and lemon tablets or gargling salt water to soothe the pain, those constantly plagued by them should take a trip to their dentist.

Teeth - Tongue - Pains - Dentures - Difficulty

Loose teeth, tongue pains, poorly fitting dentures and difficulty chewing food should also be taken more seriously, the dentists warned.

The warning comes amid a surge in cases of head and neck cancer - of which oral is the most common form - as adults often neglect their oral health.

Statistics - Prevalence - Head - Neck - Cancers

Worrying statistics show the prevalence of head and neck cancers has soared by nearly a third since the 1990s.

However, projections show the disease is continuing to spiral, and cases will surge by another 33 per cent in the next 20 years.

People - Year - UK - US - Toll

Currently it kills around 2,400 people each year in the UK, while in the US the toll is often as high as 13,000.

Dr Eskander, winner of Best Young dentist 2017, has stressed the importance of early detection of mouth cancer.

MailOnline - Cancer - Survival - Rates - Cancer

She told MailOnline: 'Oral cancer survival rates are significantly increased if the it’s found early when the cancer is the easier to treat.

'As dentists, we regularly look for signs of mouth cancer during your regular check ups, but it is also really important for patients to be able to recognise the signs too.

'Since - Symptoms - Ways - Patches - Sore

'Since symptoms manifest in several ways such as unexplained white patches, sore throats, sores that do not heal, it can be overlooked.'

Oral cancer is where a tumour or growth develops inside...

(Excerpt) Read more at: Mail Online

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