18th - 23rd September mark the 11th head & neck cancer awareness week.

Head and neck cancer is a way of describing any cancer that is found in the head or neck region, except in the brain, ears, eyes or oesophagus. The cancers usually begin in the squamous cells that line the moist, mucosal surfaces inside the head and neck (e.g., inside the mouth, nose and throat). There are more than 30 areas within the head and neck where cancer can develop. Head and neck cancer is the seventh most common type of cancer in Europe. It is approximately half as common as lung cancer, but twice as common as cervical cancer. Despite its severity and increasing prevalence within society, there is little awareness of head and neck cancer, and patient outcomes remain very poor; 60% of people with head and neck cancer present with locally advanced disease at diagnosis and 60% of people diagnosed at an advanced stage die from the disease within 5 years. However, for those patients diagnosed in the early stages of the disease, there is an 80–90% survival rate.

To find out more about it you can check the Make Sense Campaign: https://makesensecampaign.eu/en/

Moreover Italian patiens can read info at the Associazione Italiana di Oncologia Cervico-Cefalica website: https://www.aiocc.it/