Oral Cancer

I went to the dentist yesterday and they gave me a piece of paper with information about Oral Cancer. It explained the people at risk of getting Oral Cancer and what you can do to counteract the cancer. You can buy a mouthwash that fights Oral Cancer and it only costs $60.

As I was reading it, the dental hygienist told me that my insurance may, or may not, cover it. So, if I really want to fight Oral Cancer it might cost me $60 out of my own pocket. I did not agree to this, and I'll tell you why.

Their explanation of the people at risk for Oral Cancer was ridiculous. They had a three stage tier, from high to higher to highest. It went something like this:

High Risk: age 18-39 - sexually active (HPV)
Higher Risk: age 40-44 - use tobacco
Highest Risk: age 45-above - use tobacco

The last two are understandable, but the first one is what is ridiculous. If you are 18-39 and sexually active you are risk for oral cancer.

That is everyone.

Well, I guess only people who have HPV or sleep with people who have HPV. Don't be a slut and your at risk percentage will drop.

Notice how they put sexually active first and HPV last, in parenthesis. I bet they hope all you read is the sexually active part. They're trying to scare people.

I don't appreciate the dentist trying to scare me into buying a $60 mouthwash.

I went ahead and did some quick research about Oral Cancer, out of curiosity. It turns out that the connection between Oral Cancer and HPV has only recently been found. They don't even know how it causes the cancer, but I don't care.

I was right. I was right not to buy the $60 mouthwash.

Now, I just have to avoid sleeping with a girl that has HPV. That shouldn't be hard since I don't get much action anyway.

If you're curious about Oral Cancer:

http://www.mdanderson.org/diseases/oralcancer/display.cfm?id=c8c43ca7-4ed9-4fdc-ad723f8f53baab01&method=displayfull