Coquitlam dental offices will be joining clinics across the Lower Mainland to offer free cancer screenings to the public, waiving their standard fee for the service.
Oral cancer is one of the least discussed cancers, and if it goes undetected, the results can be devastating. About 500 new cases of oral cancer are diagnosed each year in B.C. and 170 patients die from the disease, according to the BC Cancer Agency, often because the disease wasn't caught soon enough.
However, with advances in technology, dental professionals can detect a wide variety of oral malignancies before they develop into cancer.In Canada, the technology can detect an estimated 84 per cent of oral cancers. As a result, the College of Dental Surgeons of BC recommends that dental professionals across the province should incorporate oral cancer screening in their regular patient exams.
To promote health Aaargon Dental Centre and Coquitlam General and Sedation Dentistry will waive the usual fee of $34 for an oral screening as part of their community initiatives exam April 16 and 17. Patients are, however, encouraged to contribute a donation, which will be matched with proceeds donated to the BC Cancer Foundation.
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