Get moving and show your support in the fight against mouth cancer
NewsPosted by: Dental Design 31st January 2020
Dr Nigel Carter OBE, Chief Executive of the Oral Health Foundation, explains how Moveit4smiles is raising cancer awareness.
This May the Moveit4smiles team is taking on one of their biggest challenges yet in their bid to raise awareness of mouth cancer – and you can join us!
It will be the last leg of a six-mountain challenge that has seen the team tackle climbs in England, Wales, Scotland and even further afield in Africa.
On the 2nd and 3rd May 2020, the Moveit4smiles team are going to be heading to the beautiful Isle of Skye, off the West Coast of Scotland, to take on Bla Bheinn. We would love for you to be there!
Activity for Moveit4smiles started in 2014 when Christina Chatfield, a dental hygienist from Brighton, led more than 300 people in an extraordinary 500 mile walk across the UK in aid of Mouth Cancer Action.
During the event, the team, which included oral health professionals and campaigners passionate about improving oral health, encountered locals from several different towns and gave them valuable information about both mouth cancer and the human papillomavirus (HPV).
Ever since, the Moveit4smiles initiative and the funds raised through it have played a vital part in allowing us to increase awareness of mouth cancer, improve knowledge around the HPV vaccination and share the importance of good oral health across the UK.
Both mouth cancer and the HPV are two growing problems that threaten the oral health and quality of life of countless people. In 2020, you and your team can help be part of the solution in a fun and active way.
In recent times we have made great strides towards reducing the threat being posed by both mouth cancer and HPV.
Mouth cancer awareness is improving. Knowledge around the common warning signs and risk factors are improving and more people are becoming mouthaware than ever before.
Furthermore, after years of tireless campaigning we are pleased that teenage boys will be vaccinated alongside their female classmates against HPV for the first time this academic year. This is a move that we believe will save thousands of lives for years to come.
In spite of this great success, there are still too many lives that are still at risk. Around one million young boys will not be offered the same catch-up programme that their female counterparts were when they were first offered the vaccine in 2008. This leaves them at risk of several potentially life-threatening diseases and genital warts.
There has also been a record rise in mouth cancer cases. Even those that “win” their battle with the disease, can be left with severe difficulties with the way they talk, eat and even breathe.
You can help us change this and create a safer, better future for everybody.
The best way to support the campaign is to get a team together to take part in the climb this May.
Use this challenge as a team building activity and encourage your colleagues to raise as much money as possible.
The Oral Health Foundation has invested nearly £2 million on improving awareness and education around mouth cancer since 2000. Without your support over the last two decades, this would not be possible.
There is more we can achieve together, and I hope that you will continue to help us raise awareness and money for Mouth Cancer Action and the importance of the HPV vaccine.
You can register your interest in taking part and joining us as we climb Bla Bheinn, also known as the Blue Mountain, by heading to www.dentalhealth.org/forms/moveit4smiles2020.
