Cambridgeshire mouth cancer survivor says diagnosis 'changed her life'
Research found 8 people die in the UK every day from mouth cancer
A mouth cancer survivor from Cambridgeshire is calling for more awareness of the disease as the number of diagnosed cases rises.
Research from the Oral Health Foundation found 8 people die from mouth cancer in the UK every day.
It also found nearly a quarter of people do not know the common signs of the illness.
Stephanie Wigglesworth lost her tongue to mouth cancer in 2013:
"I was 30 when I was diagnosed - I had an ulcer in a certain spot that's come back and thought nothing of it, then the day before my 30th birthday, half of my tongue was numb," she said.
"I had to learn how to swallow, how to say my children's names and I had to learn a new normal - it's massively impacted everything."
As part of November's Mouth Cancer Action Month, health experts across the UK want to raise awareness about the condition.
The Oral Health Foundation found cases have jumped by over one-third (34%) in the last decade, and have more than doubled (103%) in the last 20 years.
Experts say mouth cancer is heavily linked to smoking and consuming alcohol over the recommended limit, which can increase risk of diagnosis by over 30-times.
"Mouth cancer changes the direction of your life"
One of the main causes of mouth cancer is human papillomavirus, known as HPV, which affects the skin and health experts say many who catch it don't have any problems.
Research found 31% of people do not know what HPV is, and only 1 in 5 know that it can cause this.
"Mouth cancer changes the direction of your life; it changes everything," Stephanie added.
"People don't know about it and they need to know; it's a silent killer and if you catch it too late, it's not a nice way to go."