The Siteman Cancer Center and Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital are providing free head and neck cancer screenings to those with increased risk factors.
Regardless of your age, tobacco (including smokeless tobacco) and alcohol use are the most significant risk factors for head and neck cancers. These substances when used together will put a person at a greater risk. Over the past decade, an increasing number of cases have also been attributed to the human papillomavirus, or HPV.
WHO SHOULD BE SCREENED
If you answer YES to one or more of the following you are a candidate for this screening:
- Are you a smoker, tobacco chewer and/or alcohol user?
- Do you have any sores in the mouth or on the tongue that have not healed in more than a month?
- Have you had persistent pain in the mouth or neck? Pain that is not associated with TMJ?
- Have you been experiencing hoarseness, a change in your voice, or a persistent cough?
- Have you had pain or difficulty swallowing?
- Do you have a lump in your neck or throat?
- Are your dentures poorly fitted?
- Do you have any growths on the skin of the face?
- Have you been experiencing a persistent sore throat/earache (longer than three weeks), especially one-sided?