treatment
Laryngeal cancer is a name given to a group of malignant tumors that target the region of the larynx. Here is everything you need to know from causes, symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment. What is laryngeal cancer? How is it recognized? Which steps await the patient towards treatment? How is he rehabilitated? Here is your adequate guide to laryngeal cancer in the following article:
Laryngeal cancer and its types
Laryngeal cancer and types of laryngeal cancer are a designation given to a group of cancers that may spread to the throat area, including: the pharynx (the muscular canal in the throat), the vocal cords, and the tonsils. Because of the multiplicity of organs included in the term larynx, we find a multiplicity of types of cancers that may affect it:
Squamous cell carcinoma: This type of cancer affects the flat cells that line the throat.
Adenocarcinoma: It is cancer that targets the glands.
Oropharyngeal cancer, which in turn is divided into: nasopharyngeal cancer, oropharyngeal cancer, and hypopharyngeal cancer.
Vocal cord cancer: which affects the area of the individual''s vocal cords.
Symptoms of laryngeal cancer
Sometimes it may be difficult to feel laryngeal cancer early because of its symptoms that we may interpret as normal, so listen to yourself carefully and turn to your doctor if you suffer from these symptoms and do not improve within two to three weeks:
Difficulty swallowing.
Sore throat.
weight loss
change in voice
Swelling of the lymph nodes.
pain in the ear.
wheezing or grunting
Continuous cough and may be accompanied by blood.
Causes and risk factors for laryngeal cancer
It was found that men are more likely to develop cancer of the larynx than women, but theories suggest that this is not the result of the gender as much as it is due to the healthy behaviors that characterize each of them, and science has not succeeded until this moment in ascertaining the specific causes that lead to the production of cancer cells in the larynx, except They point to a group of factors that seriously increase the risk of infection, which are the following:
smoking.
Excessive alcohol consumption.
Malnutrition.
Poor dental and oral health.
Genetic factor.
Exposure to asbestos used in construction.
Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD).
Human papilloma virus (HPV).
Laryngeal cancer diagnosis
During your appointment with the doctor, first expect him to review your medical history and may ask you about some details in it to make sure of the genetic factor and the diseases that you had previously, and initially the doctor will perform a laryngoscopy to check for signs of tumor in it, and if he finds a somewhat strange tissue he will ask you Perform some tests, which may include:
1. Biopsy examination
A biopsy examination is about taking a sample of foreign tissue and examining it in laboratories to confirm the type of tumor, and the biopsies that the doctor may request vary to all of the following:
Conventional biopsy: The specialist doctor makes a small incision and takes a sample of tissue, under general anesthesia and in the operating room.
Needle biopsy: During which the doctor s a thin needle directly into the site of the tumor and takes a sample of cells.
Endoscopic biopsy: During which the doctor uses an endoscope to gain access to the tumor tissue and take a sample through it.
2. Determine the stages of cancer
In the event that the biopsy showed that the talk is about cancer cells, the laboratory examination of the biopsy will also tell you about the stage the tumor has reached, and the intent here is how deep and spread it is in the body:
Stage 0: The tumor is present only in the upper layer of cells, i.e. in the affected part of the larynx.
Stage 1: The tumor is less than 2 centimeters across and is confined to the affected part of the larynx.
Stage 2: The tumor is between 2 and 4 centimeters and may have begun to grow in a nearby area.
Stage 3: The tumor is larger than 4 centimeters and has spread to the larynx and has spread to a single lymph node.
Stage 4: The tumor has spread to the lymph nodes or to more distant organs in the body.
3. Various imaging tests
The use of imaging tests aims to determine the extent of the disease in the body, and in the case of throat cancer, you may need tests to examine the chest, neck, head, and even the body as a whole. Among the most important types of imaging are:
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI): This test uses powerful magnetic radio waves to detailed pictures of the organs throughout the neck area. MRI looks for tumors that have spread to the rest of the body.
Positron emission tomography (PET): This test depends on injecting a type of radioactive sugar into the patient’s blood. The scan s pictures of radioactive areas in the body where cancer cells react differently than the body’s cells with this radioactive sugar. This technique is used mostly in advanced stages of cancer.
CT scan: CT X-rays can produce an image of the soft tissues and organs in the body, which helps doctors determine the extent of tissue damage to the lymph nodes and lungs.
Radiography with barium: It is a dense, radioactive liquid as well. It works on the same principle as positron emission imaging, except that it specifically examines the digestive system, where the patient swallows barium and undergoes radiography.
Chest x-ray: If your doctor suspects that cancer has spread to your lungs, he will direct you to a chest x-ray to ensure the accuracy of his suspicions.
Throat cancer treatment
Because throat cancer is diverse, and because it may vary in its stages, it is natural that there are many ways to treat it, so the doctor may resort to one of the following options and may even combine more than one treatment:
1. The surgery
In the event that there is a good possibility of removing the cancerous tumor, the doctor will most likely choose one of the following surgeries:
Endoscopic surgery: During this surgery, the surgeon uses an endoscope that has a light and a camera at its end, and completes traditional or laser surgery. The endoscope is used in the very early stages of cancer.
Vocal cord removal: If the tumor spreads to the vocal cords, the surgeon may need to remove all or some of the vocal cords.
Vocal box eradication: In the event that the cancer bypasses the vocal cords and spreads to the entire voice box, the doctor may need to remove the entire voice box. In this case, the patient may still be able to speak after surgery, but sometimes he may lose this ability, so he has to learn about His abilities to speak without the box.
Excision of parts of the pharynx: This is done if the tumor targets part of the muscular canal in the pharynx.
Neck dissection: If the tumor affected some of the lymph nodes, the surgeon will have to dissect the neck and remove some glands as needed.
2. Radiotherapy
After removing the tumor by surgery, the doctor will most likely direct you to undergo some radiation sessions in order to destroy any cancerous cells that may remain after the operation in order to completely eliminate the cancer, and the types of radiation therapy:
Brachytherapy: In this type of radiotherapy, radioactive seeds are implanted directly into or adjacent to the tumor, and it plays its role in destroying cancer cells with a high degree of radiation.
Modulated or 3D radiotherapy: These are two types of radiotherapy that require the design of an individual radiological intervention for each patient according to the location and conditions of his tumor and are the most common method of treatment.
3. Chemotherapy
In cases of large or advanced tumors that have spread to the lymph nodes and other organs and tissues, your doctor may recommend chemotherapy in addition to radiation therapy. Radiation destroys existing cancer cells while chemotherapy slows and fights the growth of malignant cells.
4. Targeted therapy
This treatment requires intervention in specific molecules responsible for tumor growth and affecting them to prevent and stop the growth of cancer cells. Until today, there is one type of targeted therapies that are used to fight throat cancer, while more research and experiments are being developed.
Recovery after laryngeal cancer treatment
With the sensitivity of the throat area and the importance of the organs located in it for simple daily life, the patient often needs recovery stages that may take some time, and some supplementary treatments for speech therapists and physical therapies. The difficulties that a patient with laryngeal cancer may face after recovery are:
Difficulty swallowing and tasting.
breathing difficulties.
Difficulty speaking and limited ability to speak.
Hardening of the skin around the neck.
Deformities of the neck and part of the face.
Of course, most of the problems you can solve and live with, but for that you need to communicate with doctors, specialists, and professionals. Therefore, you must know your rights well and study and understand what you suffer from in order to go to the most appropriate medical address for you.
