FORMER caterer Robert Kerr is the first to admit he has not always looked after his health. “I was on a concoction of drugs. I was a fat slob, I smoked and I drank like a fish,” he recalled.

A couple of years ago, Robert’s kidneys failed and a subsequent diagnosis of type two diabetes gave him the wake-up call he needed to lose weight and lead a more healthy lifestyle.

“After six months of education, I didn’t need injections or pills. I went to my GP for a check-up. As I stood up to leave, I said: ‘I have a little pimple under my tongue.’ He had a look and sent me to Poole Hospital.”

Doctors there carried out a biopsy, and although it did not appear to be cancerous, they decided to remove the spot. Further tests confirmed that Robert had mouth cancer and that it had spread into his neck.

“I was summoned back for another appointment and the news was broken to me. I have never heard so much silence. The only thing that comes into your mind is: ‘How long have I got?’”

The multi-disciplinary team that looks after head and neck cancer patients had already discussed Robert’s diagnosis and come up with a treatment plan. He had to return to hospital for further surgery to remove the cancer and cancerous lymph nodes, and reconstruct his mouth and tongue.

The operation in March last year took 13 hours. Robert, 63, of Hamworthy, Poole, was left with a scar right across his throat and no feeling from just below his jaw to the top of his shoulders, but he is grateful to be alive. He has lost nearly five stone in weight, no longer smokes or drinks and now exercises every day.

“They did such a good job that you would never imagine I had been in hospital at all, except for talking with a few spanners in my mouth,” he said.

“Indirectly, this cancer is one of the best things that’s happened to me because it’s kicked me so hard up the backside. I’m not saying I’m glad it was diagnosed, but I have been given a second chance.

“People must listen to their bodies. I abused mine totally and from a medical standpoint, the combination of cigarettes and alcohol is quadruple dangerous.”

Consultant maxillofacial surgeon Parkash Ramchandani said: “Oral cancer, unlike other cancers, is not well-publicised, so people don’t know about it.

“The incidence is increasing. The average age at which we see a person with a head and neck cancer is 63 to 65, but we are seeing more and more young patients as well. Seventy to 80 per cent have an obvious risk factor.”

Although public health campaigns and the smoking ban are encouraging people to smoke less, alcohol is another big factor in developing mouth cancer. “The average age at which a person starts to drink has fallen from 17 to 11 and we’ve seen an increase in cancer in females – they have almost caught up with the males,” said Mr Ramchandani.

About half the population sees a dentist at least once a year, and some mouth cancers are picked up by them during routine examinations.

“In common with other cancers, the earlier you pick it up, the better the outlook.

“There’s a 90 per cent survival rate if it is small and early,” said Mr Ramchandani.