Head and Neck Cancers Awareness Month

Transcript

• 00:00Head neck cancers are cancers that
• 00:02start in the parts of the body
• 00:05that extends sort of from the
• 00:07nose to the top of the esophagus.
• 00:09So the common ones might be cancer of
• 00:12the tongue or cancer of the voice box.
• 00:20One of the most common symptoms
• 00:22of head neck cancer is a non
• 00:24healing sore on the tongue.
• 00:26Other things might be difficulty swallowing,
• 00:28might have pain in your throat
• 00:30that was always on one side.
• 00:32For many people,
• 00:33it's a painless lump in the neck.
• 00:36Some people develop hoarseness,
• 00:37some people cough up blood.
• 00:39Some people have a ear ache.
• 00:47Older people are at risk
• 00:49for head and neck cancer.
• 00:50It's also the case that smokers
• 00:52are at high risk for head neck
• 00:55cancer and even people who've quit
• 00:57smoking if they smoked a pack a day
• 00:59or half a pack a day for 15 or 20
• 01:02years might be an increased risk.
• 01:04People who smoke tobacco and drink
• 01:06alcohol or at higher risk quite a lot
• 01:08of people in the United States now are
• 01:10getting head neck cancer because they've
• 01:13been exposed to human papilloma virus.
• 01:19We strongly recommend that everybody
• 01:21be considered for that vaccination
• 01:24beginning at around age 11.
• 01:25Both boys and girls,
• 01:27and we're now also recommending young
• 01:29adults up to the age of about 46.
• 01:37The common thing many people be familiar
• 01:39with is when you're at the dentist,
• 01:41the hygienist might take a piece of gauze,
• 01:43wrap it around your tongue,
• 01:44move your tongue to one side,
• 01:46and examine the floor of the mouth and
• 01:48the side of the cheek on that side,
• 01:51and then do the same thing on the other
• 01:53side and palpate all through those areas,
• 01:55making sure there aren't any lumps or bumps.