Oral sex is causing a rise in cases of throat cancer.
Oral sex is causing an increase in throat cancer cases
A new report has revealed that hundreds more people are passing away from the disease than before the coronavirus pandemic whilst there has been a near 50 per cent increase in cases since 2013.
Cancer Research UK data shows that the trend is being driven by younger patients being diagnosed with the illness as it shows a considerable rise in both men and women aged 25 to 49 between 1993 and 2019.
Smoking, alcohol and human papillomavirus (HPV) - a normally harmless virus that spreads sexually and through skin contact - are the main causes of the disease.
Professor Ali Khurram, an expert at the University of Sheffield, said: "There is poor awareness of the disease and the causative factors. We are seeing these cancers in much younger patients now.
"A significant proportion of the increase can be attributed to HPV infection (tonsil cancer), but the majority remain linked to smoking or tobacco chewing and alcohol, which are being increasingly used.
"Poor oral health and socioeconomic factors also contribute to the increased incidence."