Head and Neck Cancer Health Article

Oral Cavity

With early detection and immediate treatment, survival rates can be dramatically improved. For lip and oral cancer, if detected at its early stages, almost 80% of the patients survive five years or more. However, when diagnosed at the advanced stages, the five year survival rate drops to a mere 18%.

Nose and sinuses

Cancers of the nasal cavity often go undetected until they reach an advanced stage. If diagnosed at the early stages, the five-year survival rates are 60–70%. However, if cancers are more advanced, only 10–30% of the patients survive five years or more.

Oropharynx

In cancer of the oropharynx, 60–80% of the patients survive five years or more if the cancer is detected in the early stages. As the cancer advances, the survival rate drops to 15–30%.

Nasopharynx

Patients who are diagnosed with early stage cancers that have originated in the nasopharynx have an excellent chance of a complete cure (almost 95%). Unfortunately, most of the time, the patients are in an advanced stage at the time of initial diagnosis. With the new chemotherapy drugs, the five year survival rate has improved and 5–40% of the patients survive five years or longer.

Larynx

Small cancers of the larynx have an excellent five-year survival rate of 75–95%. However, as with most of the head and neck cancers, the survival rates drop dramatically as the cancer advances. Only 15–25% of the patients survive five years or more after being initially diagnosed with advanced laryngeal cancer.

Prevention

Refraining from the use of all tobacco products (cigarettes, cigars, pipe tobacco, chewing tobacco), consuming alcohol in moderation, and practicing good oral hygiene are some of the measures that one can take to prevent head and neck cancers. Since there is an association between excessive exposure to the sun and lip cancer, people who spend a lot of time outdoors in the sun should protect themselves from the sun's harmful rays. Regular physical examinations, or mouth examination by the patient himself, or by the patient's doctor or dentist, can help detect oral cancer in its very early stages.

Since working with asbestos has been shown to increase one's risk of getting cancer of the larynx, asbestos workers should follow safety rules to avoid inhaling asbestos fibers. Also, malnutrition and vitamin deficiencies have been shown to have some association with an increased incidence of head and neck cancers. The American Cancer Society, therefore, recommends eating a healthy diet, consisting of at least five servings of fruits and vegetables every day, and six servings of food from other plant sources such as cereals, breads, grain products, rice, pasta and beans. Reducing one's intake of high-fat food from animal sources is advised.

BOOKS

Berkow, Robert, ed., et al. Merck Manual of Diagnosis and Therapy. 16th ed. Rahway, NJ: Merck Research Laboratories, 1992.

Dollinger, Malin, et al. Everyone's Guide to Cancer Therapy: How Cancer is Diagnosed, Treated, and Managed Day to Day. 3rd ed. Kansas City: Andres & McMeel, 1998.

Morra, Marion E., and Eve Potts. Choices: The New, Most Up- To-Date Sourcebook for Cancer Information. New York: Avon Books, 1994.

ORGANIZATIONS

American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons. 9700 West Bryn Mawr Ave., Rosemont, IL 60018-5701.(847) 678-6200. <http://www.aaoms.org>.

International Association of Laryngectomies (IAL). 7440 North Shadeland Ave., Suite 100, Indianapolis, IN 46250.

National Cancer Institute. Building 31, Room 10A31, 31 Center Drive, MSC 2580, Bethesda, MD 20892-2580. (800) 422-6237. <http://www.nci.nih.gov>.

National Oral Health Information Clearing House; 1 NOHIC Way, Bethesda, MD 20892-3500. (301) 402-7364.

Oral Health Education Foundation, Inc. 5865 Colonist Drive, P.O. Box 396, Fairburn, GA 30213. (770) 969-7400.

Lata Cherath, PhD

KEY TERMS

Biopsy—The surgical removal and microscopic examination of living tissue for diagnostic purposes.

Chemotherapy—Treatment of cancer with synthetic drugs that destroy the tumor either by inhibiting the growth of the cancerous cells or by killing the cancer cells.

Clinical trials—Highly regulated and carefully controlled patient studies, where either new drugs to treat cancer or novel methods of treatment are investigated.

Computerized tomography scan (CT scan)—A medical procedure where a series of X-rays are taken and put together by a computer in order to form detailed pictures of areas inside the body.

Laryngoscopy—A medical procedure that uses flexible, lighted, narrow tubes inserted through the mouth or nose to examine the larynx and other areas deep inside the neck.

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)—A medical procedure used for diagnostic purposes where pictures of areas inside the body can be created using a magnet linked to a computer.

Radiation therapy—Treatment using high energy radiation from x-ray machines, cobalt, radium, or other sources.

Stoma—When the entire larynx must be surgically removed, an opening is surgically created in the neck so that the windpipe can be brought out to the neck. This opening is called the stoma.

Ultrasonogram—A procedure where high-frequency sound waves that cannot be heard by human ears are bounced off internal organs and tissues. These sound waves produce a pattern of echoes which are then used by the computer to create sonograms, or pictures of areas inside the body.

X rays—High energy radiation used in high doses, either to diagnose or treat disease.