Over 600 specialists take part in International Conference of Oncologists in Minsk

Awareness of head and neck malignancies is the first step in early cancer diagnosis. This was told at the thematic International Scientific and Practical Conference in Minsk.

The platform has brought together more than 600 Belarusian and Russian specialists.

In our country, the prevention projects have been actively carried out since 2014, when medics first organized free check-ups. The greatest efficiency was shown by the action, where all stages of patient selection were applied: information, questionnaire and examination. As a result, more than 80% of people were found to have malignancies.

Experts note that a simple oral examination by a doctor is the best method of detecting cancer of this localization. Every year, tumors of the oral cavity, pharynx and larynx are found in one and a half thousand people.

Natalia Trizna, Head of the Department of the N.N. RNPC of Oncology and Medical Radiology. Alexandrova:

"Detecting a tumor at an early stage allows, given all the possibilities we have, to cure about 80% of patients. If the patient is treated at stage 3-4, the five-year survival rate is no more than 20%. Therefore, it is very important to pay attention to non-specific symptoms that may suggest that the patient has cancer, oral cavity, pharynx, larynx. These are nasal congestion, sore throat, difficulty in swallowing, ulcers, some pathological formations traumatizing the mucous membrane of the teeth, oral cavity".

According to specialists, early diagnosis largely depends on the cancer literacy of primary care physicians. Thus, today in our country, additions have been made to the training programs for retraining doctors-specialists, manuals and tests for oncological literacy have been developed. One of the examples of successful implementation of practice-oriented training is the introduction of a new direction for Belarus: holding master classes on anatomical models.