Privately held insurance claims related to oral cancer are up 61 percent since 2011, an increase that is likely linked to human papillomavirus (HPV), according to a new data from FAIR Health.
The largest increases in claims arose in throat and tongue cancers. Males appear to be disproportionately impacted by oral forms of cancer, as men claim it three times as often as women from 2011 to 2015, according to Fair Health. Forms of oral cancer are the eighth most common cancer affecting men, and they have a drastically high death rate.
Some 48,250 Americans will be diagnosed with oral cancer this year, and it will kill over 9,575 people. That is a death rate of one person per hour every 24 hours for the entire year, according to the Oral Cancer Foundation.
“Oral cancer is a serious and growing health problem. We hope that our data help inform the national conversation on this topic,” FAIR Health President Robin Gelburd.
Both sexes have equal chances of gum cancer and benign tumors that have the propensity to become cancerous.
Middle-aged individuals, those aged 45 years or older, are also more likely to claim forms of oral cancer than their younger counterparts. Oral cancer claims rose in people between the ages of 56 and 64-years-old, but declined in individuals over 65.
The chief cause of oral cancer, unsurprisingly, is tobacco use, including cigarettes, pipe tobacco, cigars and smokeless forms. Both interesting and alarming is the fact that HPV is now a contributing factor to the rise in oral cancer.
There is hope, however, for those who are concerned about developing oral cancer. People who are diagnosed with oral cancer at the early, local stage, are much more likely to be alive five years after the initial detection. Historically, oral cancer is so deadly not because it is hard to discover, but rather that it is routinely discovered in later stages, the Oral Cancer Foundation reports.
The American Dental Association suggest that dentists should perform oral cancer screenings at routine check-ups, according to Fair Health. Interestingly, while men are three times as likely to claim forms of oral cancer, they are much less likely than women to seek routine dental screenings, Fair Health reports.
Two key dental procedures associated with oral cancer screenings have been on the rise recently: CDT codes D0431, an adjunctive pre-diagnostic test, and D7287, exfoliative cytological sample collection.
Send tips to robert@dailycallernewsfoundation.org
All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.