I had to have a neck dissection and part of my tongue removed after a ‘harmless’ mouth ulcer – don’t ignore the signs
It was considered an old man’s disease”There was very little time to digest the news before being taken to meet my clinical team at a different part of the hospital, where I learned about the surgery I would be having and that I may have to learn to talk and eat again afterwards.”


“My dentist never carried out a mouth cancer screening on me during dental appointments and there were never any mouth cancer adverts or posters. Tongue cancer is a type of head and neck cancer. Collectively, this kills 4,143 people every year, according to Cancer Research UK. Who is at risk of mouth cancer?“Sometimes patients can incorrectly attribute problems in the mouth to dental infections.
Read more on cancer
“All I knew was that it was considered an old man’s disease and that you could get it if you smoked heavily or drank lots of alcohol. According to Alistair Fry, consultant oral and maxillofacial surgeon at Cromwell Hospital in London, mouth cancer, which is the most common type of head and neck cancer, is on the rise, with around 8,000 people in the UK diagnosed per year.The 52-year-old never smoked, didn’t drink much and was active, running three times a week.And not everyone is so lucky.
Most read in Health
“I had no idea that if an ulcer didn’t heal, it could turn into mouth cancer.”She says: “I had the side of my tongue removed and a neck dissection. I was in hospital for five days.
Early mouth cancers (stage 1) have around a 90 per cent cure rate, and treatments are usually straightforward with little impact.”I finally had a biopsy done at the hospital and when I returned for the results, I was told by a specialist that I had tongue cancer,” she says. “I had never smoked and didn’t drink much alcohol and I was a runner.
SIX-WEEK TRANSFORMATION
This has reportedly increased by over 30 per cent in the last 10 years. While tobacco, alcohol and human papillomavirus (HPV) can increase your risk, there is often no known underlying trigger. Leading up to her diagnosis, she also visited her dentist, who examined her but never mentioned it could be cancer.”Early diagnosis is crucial,” says Fry.In early February 2016, Karen was eventually diagnosed with tongue cancer.
“It took a lot of chasing up to get a referral to the hospital, which should have gone via my GP,” she tells Sun Health. Karen
Late presentation or more advanced stages falls to just under 50 per cent and is more likely to impact quality of life, including speech, swallow, taste, and appearance. Generally, alcohol and tobacco use are considered the highest risk for developing mouth cancer.If mouth cancer is diagnosed, the treatment provided will depend on many factors including type, size, and position of the cancer.”You see plenty about other cancers but rarely about this type of cancer, which impacts so much of a patient’s life and that of their family’s too.Your dentist will look for the common signs and symptoms during your appointment, and all dentists also include an oral cancer screening as part of your usual check-up.He says: “Generally, people haven’t heard much about mouth cancer, which is perhaps one of the reasons why the diagnosis can be missed and is often late.”I was 43 when I was diagnosed, never smoked and only drank a little bit of alcohol socially.Early diagnosis is vital for improving survival rates, so Karen is calling for greater awareness of the disease.

How common is mouth cancer?
Karen asked what had caused her tongue cancer, but she was told she’d simply been unlucky. What are the main symptoms people should look out for?“My world fell apart instantly. I was so frightened hearing that I had tongue cancer, as I thought I was a healthy person.How is it treated? If your dentist sees anything that requires further investigation, they will refer you to a mouth cancer specialist for further tests in hospital.The earliest signs of mouth cancer can include an ulcer that won’t heal or red and white patches that start to look different in appearance.
READ MORE SUN STORIES
“The radiotherapy was every day for six weeks.”Your hospital team will also consider your general health and fitness
together with any potential side effects of treatment.
Mouth cancer symptoms

What is the first sign of mouth cancer?