Access to dental services for head and neck cancer patients

Dental assessment is important for patients with cancer of the head and neck who are to have radiotherapy, as many of these patients have poor dental health before they start treatment. This, compounded by the fact that radiotherapy to the head and neck has a detrimental effect on oral health, has led the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) to issue guidance that the dental health of these patients should be assessed before treatment. Unfortunately some multidisciplinary teams, such as the one at United Lincolnshire Hospitals, do not have access to a restorative dentist or a dental hygienist. In a retrospective survey we investigated access to general dental services by patients with head and neck cancer who were to have radiotherapy at our hospital and found that 37/71 (52%) had not been reviewed by a dentist within the past 12 months. A secondary national survey that investigated the availability of restorative dental and dental hygienic services showed that of the 56 multidisciplinary teams that deal with head and neck cancer in England, 19 (34%) do not have access to a restorative dentist and 23 (41%) do not have access to a dental hygienist, suggesting that this problem may be countrywide.