Aspen Dental (www.aspendent.com) announced today that the company will donate $2,300 to the Oral Cancer Foundation as part of its commitment to oral cancer detection and treatment. The amount represents a $5 donation for every Vizilite Plus® screening conducted at Aspen Dental offices during Oral, Head, and Neck Cancer Awareness Week (April 12-18, 2010). Vizilite Plus is a blue-light, "glowstick" technology that helps detect oral cancer.
According to the Oral Cancer Foundation, more than 35,000 Americans are diagnosed with oral or pharyngeal cancer each year, and oral cancer is responsible for approximately 8,000 deaths annually. Oral cancer is often discovered late in its development, which means that the death rate is particularly high.
Aspen Dental has a longstanding commitment to oral cancer awareness. Most recently, Aspen Dental sponsored Oral Health America's National Spit Tobacco Education Program (NSTEP, www.nstep.org), at the Little League Baseball World Series in August 2009. The NSTEP program educates youth and their parents about the risks of smokeless tobacco use.
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