THE UK's leading dental charity is appealing to the Government to include boys in a planned vaccination programme to guard against the sexually transmitted HPV virus - after mouth cancer deaths related to the virus reached their highest ever level.

The British Dental Health Foundation was speaking after a new large scale US study of 46,000 mouth cancer cases found that the number of deaths caused by the sexually transmitted HPV virus has increased by a third over the last 30 years and is now the highest it has ever been.

The Government has already agreed to introduce the HPV vaccine for all 12 to13-year-old girls from September, 2008 to guard against cervical cancer in the future.

However, with mouth cancer killing one person every five hours in the UK and affecting more men than women, the foundation believes it is vital that the vaccine is given to boys as well as girls in order to halt the constant increase in new mouth cancer cases.

Dr Nigel Carter, chief executive of the foundation, commented: "It is admirable that the Government is taking such positive steps to reduce the number of cervical cancer cases for the women of the future but, with mouth cancer killing more people than cervical cancer and testicular cancer combined, it is clear that this little known condition also needs to be addressed.

"By expanding its HPV vaccination program to include boys as well as girls, the Government would be able to address the problem of rising HPV-related mouth cancer deaths in a simple, fair and effective manner.

"With young people becoming progressively more sexually active this problem is not going to go away. It needs to be addressed and sooner rather than later."

However, it is not just unprotected oral sex that increases a person's risk of developing mouth cancer. Using tobacco is the main risk factor for the condition, closely followed by drinking alcohol to excess.

Dr Carter continued: "People need to take steps to reduce their risk of developing the condition, whether that be by cutting out smoking, by reducing their alcohol consumption or by taking a HPV test along with their partner.

"With early detection increasing survival chances from one in two to nine out of ten, it is vital that people are aware of the symptoms of mouth cancer too.

"If you have an ulcer that doesn't heal after three weeks or you notice a lump or a red or white patch in the mouth you should visit your dentist or doctor immediately."

For more information on mouth cancer visit the website www.mouthcancer.org.

The study, led by Maura Gillison at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, looked at trends in oral cancers recorded by US National Cancer Institute registries. It was published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

The British Dental Health Foundation is an independent charity that ,along with its global arm, the International Dental Health Foundation, is dedicated to improving the oral health of the public by providing free and impartial dental advice, by running educational campaigns like National Smile Month and by informing and influencing the public, profession and Government on issues such as mouth cancer awareness and water fluoridation.

Members of the public can contact the Dental Helpline for free and impartial expert advice on 0845 063 1188, Monday to Friday.