Head and neck cancer survivors often suffer from serious mouth problems after treatment. These include mucositis, dry mouth (xerostomia), and dental infections. Such issues make eating hard and reduce their overall health and life quality. "More often than not, the dental health issues faced by these patients are neglected or never addressed properly," says M.R. Rajagopal, Chairman Emeritus, Pallium India. To tackle this, Pallium India has started a Department of Palliative Care Dentistry at its headquarters in the capital. This new unit aims to provide proper oral care to cancer patients and others needing palliative care. Oral cancers burden Kerala significantly, with rates at 17.7 per 100,000 for rural men and 9.3 for rural women. Oral cancer makes up 5-7% of cancers in men statewide. Dr. Rajagopal notes that dental health issues also affect the elderly and chronic patients, and timely care can greatly help their wellbeing. Though palliative care is now part of medical and nursing education in Kerala, dental education still lacks this focus. Amirtha Thampi, who leads Pallium India’s Palliative Dentistry, urges the Indian Dental Council to include palliative care training in dentistry. Globally, palliative dental care addresses pain, infections, and function to improve patients' lives, often through teamwork across medical fields. Pallium India sees its new department as a key step in giving compassionate, focused care to seriously ill patients. Plans include a mobile dental unit to reach more people. "This is new learning for us too and we are taking things one step at a time," says Dr. Thampi.