UK,
10
November
2017
|
14:14
Europe/London

Staff get ready for ‘Blue Wednesday’ in support of Mouth Cancer Action Month 2017

This Wednesday, staff at everyday health company, Simplyhealth will be smiling, grinning and pouting blue lips as part of Mouth Cancer Action Month – and they want everyone else to join in too.

‘Blue Wednesday’ – on 15 November 2017 – is a day on which everyone is encouraged to wear something blue in support of the Oral Health Foundation’s (OHF) Mouth Cancer Action Month 2017.

As national campaign sponsor, Simplyhealth – the specialist providers of dental payment plans – is inspiring people to make a ‘BlueLipSelfie’ on a special campaign website, www.bluelipselfie.co.uk to become ‘Mouthaware’ about the risks and symptoms of mouth cancer.

Last year in the UK, more than 7,000 people were diagnosed with mouth cancer, yet awareness of the disease remains dangerously low. Cases have grown by a third in the last decade and it is one of very few cancers which are predicted to increase further in the coming years.*

Blue Wednesday is a chance for everyone to show their support for mouth cancer awareness. It can be as simple as doing a ‘bluelipselfie’; or going the whole hog and involving family, friends and work colleagues in fundraising events, fancy dress competitions or other ‘Blue Wednesday’ activities.

BlueLipSelfie, is a great opportunity to visibly show support for mouth cancer awareness, as well as have a bit of fun in the process.


Very few people are aware of the risks or signs of mouth cancer, let alone that cases of this disease are on the increase. We are very passionate about promoting the message of prevention, encouraging people to visit the dentist regularly and helping them to recognise early signs of mouth cancer. One of the ways we are doing this is to spread the word via this dedicated social media campaign.
 
Dr Henry Clover, Director of Dental Policy at Simplyhealth

According to research carried out by the Oral Health Foundation, four out of five people (86%) do not know the main symptoms of mouth cancer.

We have around a 90% chance of beating mouth cancer if we can spot it early enough but sadly, there is not enough awareness about what to look for, which results in a devastating number of cases being diagnosed too late. 

By being ‘Mouthaware’ and able to recognise any unusual changes in our mouth, we can vastly improve our chances of defeating the disease while also having a better quality of life.
CEO of the OHF, Dr Nigel Carter OBE

Signs and symptoms of mouth cancer

• Ulcers which do not heal within three weeks

• Red and white patches in the mouth

• Unusual lumps or swellings in the mouth, head and neck area.

How to show off your #BlueLipSelfie for Blue Wednesday

• Go to www.bluelipselfie.co.uk and take/upload your photo the gallery. You can add in cartoon blue lips with our easy app, or wear blue lipstick or plastic blue lips (available at www.mouthcancer.org/shop)

• Or submit your selfies via social media using the hashtag #BlueLipSelfie

• Share your selfies using the hashtag #BlueLipSelfie to help raise awareness of mouth cancer and encourage others to show their support

For more information on Mouth Cancer Action Month and ‘Blue Wednesday’ on 15 November, and how you can get involved, please visit www.mouthcancer.org.For more information about #BlueLipSelfie and oral health information, visit www.denplan.co.uk/myteeth

*Oral Health Foundation

Boilerplate

For more information on Simplyhealth Professionals:Sara Elliott, Consumer Press and PR Officer, on SaraE@denplan.co.uk or 01962 828194Lacey Callanan on LaceyC@denplan.co.uk or 01962 828133

For more information on the Oral Health Foundation:For more information contact: Gavin Hawes on gavin@dentalhealth.org orcall 01788 546 365 W: www.dentalhealth.org

Dental

Simplyhealth is the UK’s leading dental payment plan specialist with more than 6,500 member dentists nationwide caring for approximately 1.7 million patients registered to a Denplan product.Simplyhealth provides the following range of leading Denplan dental payment plans under the Denplan name:

• Denplan Care: all routine and restorative care + worldwide dental injury and dental emergency cover

• Denplan Essentials: routine care only + worldwide dental injury and dental emergency cover

• Denplan for Children: routine and other agreed care + worldwide dental injury and dental emergency cover

• Denplan Membership: registered with the dentist + worldwide dental injury and dental emergency cover

• Denplan Hygiene: A dental payment plan without dental insurance for all types of practice from NHS, mixed and private to support patients commit to a consistent hygiene programme.

• Denplan Emergency Insurance: worldwide dental injury and dental emergency cover only

Simplyhealth also provide a wide range of professional services for its member dentists and their practice teams, including the Denplan Quality Programme and Denplan Excel Accreditation Programme. Plus regulatory advice, business and marketing consultancy services and networking opportunities.Dentist enquiries telephone: 0800 169 9962.For patient enquiries telephone: 0800 401 402For details of all of our products, visit www.denplan.co.uk

Vets

Simplyhealth is the UK’s leading pet health payment plan specialist with more than 1,800 member vets nationwide caring for approximately 600,000 registered pets. Pet owner enquiries telephone: 0800 169 9958 Vet enquiries telephone: 0800 587 2581 www.pethealthplans.co.uk

About the Oral Health Foundation

The Oral Health Foundation is the leading national charity working to improve oral health. Our goal is to improve people’s lives by reducing the harm caused by oral diseases – many of which are entirely preventable. Established more than 45 years ago, we continue to provide expert, independent and impartial advice on all aspects of oral health to those who need it most. We work closely with Government, dental and health professionals, manufacturers, the dental trade, national and local agencies and the public, to achieve our mission of addressing the inequalities which exist in oral health, changing people’s lives for the better. Visit www.dentalhealth.org for more information.

About Mouth Cancer Action Month

Every November, the Oral Health Foundation organises and runs Mouth Cancer Action Month, under the message ‘if in doubt, get checked out’. Our campaign has become an influential springboard in educating the public about mouth cancer, highlighting the risks, symptoms and causes of the disease.The campaign is about taking action and raising awareness, particularly among those groups who are most at risk. We want people to look out for ulcers which do not heal within three weeks, red and white patches in the mouth, and unusual lumps or swellings while encouraging them to regularly visit a dentist to ensure they’re checked for signs of mouth cancer.By working closely with the dental and health profession and supporting them in their activities to patients and local communities, we continue to increase mouth cancer awareness and save lives through early detection.Mouth Cancer Action Month is Sponsored by Simplyhealth and also supported by Dentists’ Provident, plus a number of other professional and commercial partners.For further information, please register your details at www.mouthcancer.org.

About Simplyhealth

In the world of healthcare, more than anywhere, experience counts. Since 1872 – long before the existence of the NHS – Simplyhealth has been helping people to make the most of life, by managing their everyday health needs. That’s why today we ensure over 3 million people in the UK have access to the health products, services and support that they need, when they need them and at a price they can afford.

We’re the kind of people who live by our purpose: we’re here to help people make the most of life through better everyday health. We’re proud to be the leading provider of everyday health cash plans, dental payment and pet health plans. And whilst we may be 144 years old, we’re not afraid to innovate. Whereas once we were known purely for cash plans, we now offer a wide range of products and services with one thing in common: an unflinching desire to cater for peoples’ everyday health needs – now and into the future.

We exist to help people make the most of life through better everyday health. That’s our purpose. We use charitable partnerships to also deliver that purpose, going beyond our products and services, but very much aligned to our business strategy. As a result of our success, in 2016 we were able to donate £1.7m to our charitable causes, supporting 23 different charities including Revitalise, Music in Hospitals, Brainwave Centre and Auditory Verbal, touching the lives of thousands of people across the UK.

Our future success and performance will enable us to deliver our ongoing pledge to donate 10% of our profits to charity every year, supporting health-related charities that share a similar outlook to us and a dedication to helping people with everyday health challenges make the most of life.

Simplyhealth is a trading name of Simplyhealth Access, which is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority.