Table 4.

Themes and sub-themes from focus groups

Theme	Sub-themes
Mix of patients with different cancers seen	Most common cancers seen
	Head and Neck seen rarely in GDS
	PDS cohort
	Paediatrics seldom seen in primary care
Dental teams working in primary care are clear in their roles	Managing and maintaining oral health
	Dental input through cancer journey
	Willingness to see these patients
	Pastoral
	Signposting
Mixed healthcare messages	Oral health
	When to visit dentist
Communication between dental and medical teams	Variation in effectiveness of communication
	Integration
	Social Attitudes
Patient experience	Physical
	Mental
Patient engagement with their healthcare	Poor attitudes to oral health
	Lack of knowledge about their cancer management
	Proactive patients
Treatment planning challenges	Chaotic
	Managing expectations
	Pre-existing oral health
	Different cancer treatments/difference between oral and other cancers
	Prevention advice
Apprehension from dental teams	Fear
	Knowledge
	Complexity
Wider system factors influence management in primary care	Organisational secondary care
	Payment system
	Referral pathways
	Access to general dental practitioners
Support	Guidance
	Patient information and other accompanying resources
	Suggestions for topics to include
	Supportive colleagues