Dramatic rise of HPV related cancer

Statistics from Cancer Research UK show the number of people diagnosed with mouth cancer have soared by a third in both men and women over the last decade alone and have increased by an astonishing 88 per cent since the 1970’s.

Until now, smoking and excessive alcohol use have been associated with the disease, however, experts now say that it is HPV, which can be transferred through oral sex, that is largely responsible for the growing number of mouth cancers in the UK.

Every year more than 6,500 Brits are diagnosed with mouth cancer, with the disease taking in excess of 2,000 lives – more than testicular and cervical cancer combined.

Mouth cancer is one of the fastest increasing cancers and, with health leaders predicting that HPV will soon become the major cause of the disease; campaigners are calling for greater education about the sexually transmitted disease.

Nigel Carter OBE, chief executive of the British Dental Health Foundation, says: “HPV is very common and almost every sexually active person will get it at some time in their lives. Most people never develop health problems as a result of HPV and around 90 per cent of infections usually go away by themselves within two years. However, sometimes HPV infections persist and may cause a variety of serious problems.”