Forth Valley Royal Hospital has been ranked one of the top 20 hospitals in the UK for recruiting patients for groundbreaking research into treatment for early mouth cancer. Findings show that patients with mouth cancer do benefit from additional surgery, a procedure which could save 21,000 lives a year worldwide.
The results of the study, published in the British Journal of Cancer, provides clarity on an issue which has vexed surgeons for more than 20 years about how best to treat patients with small cancers who may have tiny undetectable deposits in their neck glands. Results show that removing the lymph glands at the same time as the mouth tumour almost halves the chances of the cancer recurring or the patient dying.
The study involved 68 surgeons and more than 600 patients across the UK. NHS Forth Consultant Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon, Mr Joseph McManners, said: “Mouth cancer is the 11th most common cancer and the number of cases in the UK have increased by 30% over the last 10 years. Despite this mouth cancer is often neglected when it comes to research but studies like this are vital as the disease and its treatment can dramatically affect a patient’s appearance and their ability to eat or speak.”
Forth Valley Royal Hospital is also the first hospital in Scotland to be involved in the Sunflower Study which aims to improve the experience of patients who require gallbladder surgery. Gallstones sometimes pass from the gallbladder into the nearby bile duct causing problems such as jaundice and severe inflammation of the pancreas. The Sunflower study aims to find out whether testing for bile duct stones is worthwhile or not in patients with a low to moderate risk, as removal of bile duct stones prior to surgery can lead to a delay in the gallbladder operation itself and increased pain and problems whilst waiting.
