Oral Cancer

Approximately 54,000 Americans will be diagnosed with oral cancer in 2022, and about 11,000 people will lose their lives to this disease. This largely preventable type of cancer affects the mouth and/or pharynx. Overall, since 2000, the rates of new oral cancer cases have not seen a significant increase. However, 5-year survival rates from these cancers have increased from the mid-1970s until the latest (2012–2018) National Cancer Institute survey. For both of these indicators, there are significant disparities in some population groups.

The National Cancer Institute's Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) Program has been an important source of information on cancer in the United States since the mid-1970s. Click on the links below for details about oral cancer rates from the most recent surveys (2012 through 2019).