Symptoms of throat cancer

Today, statistics show that 65-70% of malignant tumors are laryngeal cancer. Today, as we can see, this is one of the most common throat diseases. It especially often affects men aged 40 and older. Women may also be at risk. Of all those who fall ill, about 60% are completely cured. Most often, city dwellers suffer from this disease, while rural residents are 1.5 - 2 times less susceptible.

Causes throat cancer

The most common causes of it can be smoking. The more a person has smoked in his life, the higher his risk of developing laryngeal cancer.

With the complex interaction of tobacco smoke and alcohol, the risk of developing a malignant tumor almost doubles. It is also worth noting that throat cancer symptoms appear not only due to smoking and alcohol abuse.

Alcohol consumption, various infectious diseases in the oral cavity, as well as environmental pollution can also provoke laryngeal cancer. The human papilloma virus can also lead to laryngeal cancer.

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Risk factors

In addition to the above, risk factors include:

• lack of vitamins B and A, which can also cause throat cancer;
• weak immune system, congenital diseases or HIV infection;
• men working in places where chemicals accumulate or in constant contact with harmful chemical elements. These include wood dust, paints, varnishes, etc.
• African Americans.

If a person:

• eats a lot of salted meat;
• does not maintain oral hygiene;
• often breathes air with high levels of asbestos or coal dust;
• has a number of genetic predispositions to this disease,
• then they may also be at risk of developing laryngeal cancer.

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Symptoms throat cancer

Laryngeal cancer occurs in such a way that healthy cells suddenly begin to actively divide, grow and touch neighboring organs. Moreover, cancer cells can metastasize. Cancer foci can appear even where it is not expected, in very distant places from the tumor itself. This can be explained by the fact that the cells of this tumor can spread through all lymphatic and blood vessels.

Laryngeal cancer may require surgery to remove the malignant tumor, namely the larynx. As a result, a person completely loses the ability to speak independently. There is hope for an artificial larynx, which scientists have created in our time. This is the so-called "voice prosthesis", which is capable of restoring up to 80% of speech.

This is a small box-implantation device that is inserted into the space formed after surgery between the trachea and the esophagus, which is very unpleasant and unusual for a person.

In this case, it is not difficult to identify symptoms of throat and larynx cancer. Early forms of larynx cancer can be identified by a hoarse voice. But if a person notices the following signs, it is also important for him to see a doctor as soon as possible.

So, if a man:

• for no reason feels a noticeable loss of weight,
• for a long period of time the cough does not leave him alone,
• feels discomfort when swallowing, namely, he has difficulty breathing and pain appears,
• feels constant pain in the throat or ear,
• feels a visible lump or swelling on the neck,

These are the main symptoms of throat and larynx cancer, as sad as it may sound.

If the described symptoms appear, if they do not disappear for more than two weeks, it is better to consult a doctor as soon as possible. Usually, in 80% of cases, the 1st stage of laryngeal cancer is asymptomatic. Therefore, it is better if the patient nevertheless notices unpleasant and unusual sensations or painful sensations in time.

It should be said that the symptoms of throat cancer may be different for each patient. We have listed the most common ones above. But they may also vary depending on the location of the tumor, the characteristics of its development, and any pathological effects on other human organs. For example, if the tumor is located in the epiglottic cartilage or in the arytenoid-epiglottic fold, then the person will feel like there is a lump in the throat. This factor can also be attributed to the first symptoms of throat cancer. If the vocal folds are damaged as a result of the disease, then the hoarse voice may eventually disappear altogether. If the tumor grows in the subglottic region, then it will provoke difficulty breathing, can lead to suffocation and endless coughing.

If the patient feels a foreign body when swallowing, as we have already written earlier, then this is one of the first laryngeal tumors, which is caused by compaction of the epiglottic cartilage. The symptom of ear pain can appear at a later stage of the development of laryngeal cancer and this usually occurs because the tumor grows into the nerves or metastases grow. Such a symptom as hoarseness occurs due to the fact that the tumor allows the vocal cords to close tightly and, as a rule, in the process of cancer development, this hoarseness increases until the voice disappears completely. If breathing is difficult, then this is directly related to the tumor growing into the lumen of the larynx. They can be attributed to the latest symptoms of throat cancer. In the future, it can grow into neighboring organs, for example, into the tissues of the cervical region, trachea. Metastases can get into the neck area most quickly. In the same way and with the same speed, they can appear in the root of the tongue, in the lungs and other organs. Metastatic tumors have the same structure as the main tumor. Therefore, if it goes to the lungs, it is called "metastatic tumor of the larynx in the lungs", but not lung cancer. These signs of throat cancer alone are not enough for the doctor. He is not able to diagnose throat cancer. The patient needs to pass quite a few more tests and get tested. One of the most common tests used to diagnose the disease is a biopsy. Using a thin needle, the doctor takes a sample of tumor tissue in order to determine in a medical laboratory whether there are cancer cells in the tissue or not. A biopsy can help determine the presence of the disease, and with the help of other diagnostic tests, the size and shape of the tumor and its exact location can be determined. If malignant cells are present, the patient must undergo a CT scan, which can detect a three-dimensional image of the tumor.

The first symptoms of throat cancer

We have already talked about symptoms in general, now we will talk about the first symptoms of throat cancer. The first signs of laryngeal cancer are as follows.

The initial stage of throat cancer, as it is also called, is accompanied by a change in the timbre of the voice, hoarseness, up to the complete disappearance of the voice. After which a person simply cannot swallow saliva, or even swallow food at all because of the painful sensations that torment him. The feeling of the presence of some foreign or alien bodies in the throat can still be another first symptom of throat cancer. Well, the last thing that can appear at first is shortness of breath.

In later stages of throat cancer, you may experience:

• difficulty in passing food through the esophagus.
• constant pain that practically does not go away even with treatment of the throat with all sorts of methods and means.
• paroxysmal or a cough that doesn't even go away.
• the appearance of pain in the ears.
• not small swellings on the neck due to the fact that the size of the lymph nodes has increased.
• in some cases – rapid weight loss.

At advanced stages 3-4 of throat cancer, sputum with pus, blood impurities and an unpleasant odor from the mouth appears. Breathing becomes more and more difficult every day.

Treatment for this disease is possible, but it must be started in a timely manner. Only the degree of complication determines whether it will end with simple treatment or the person's larynx will undergo surgical intervention.

The main thing to understand is that the sooner a person examines his body, the sooner a diagnosis is made, the greater the chances of receiving help without harm to health, which will help not to neglect the disease. Do not bring the disease to the extreme terms, so that even the most radical methods will no longer be able to help.

During a preventive examination by a dentist or otolaryngologist, ulcers on the mucous membrane of the larynx, if any, may be detected. However, a patient can only receive a more accurate diagnosis through a special examination. Ultrasound and X-ray examinations help to determine the location of the tumor, its size, and shape. During treatment, a specialist may often prescribe magnetic resonance imaging. A mandatory diagnostic test is laboratory tests, in which, as a result of obtaining a piece of tissue or a smear taken from the larynx, experiments are carried out under a microscope. Such an analysis is extremely necessary, since it can be used to identify atypical cells - dead or with deviations.

If the treatment is carried out correctly, especially in the early stages of the disease, a favorable prognosis can be safely achieved. The situation is worsened, as a rule, by the growth of cancerous ulcers into neighboring organs and tissues, some complications, especially distant metastases, which serves as a sign of the generalization process.

Stages

Medicine is familiar with various forms of throat cancer. The most common among them is squamous cell carcinoma of the larynx. Most often, malignant tumors of the larynx are located in the middle section, where the vocal cords are located.

How can you determine for yourself whether you are a carrier of laryngeal cancer or not?

As mentioned earlier, certain symptoms may arise as a result of where exactly the tumor is located. If it is present in the upper parts of the pharynx, then the painful sensations arise in the throat. This pain is very similar to the pain of angina.

If the tumor is localized in the pharynx, a painful sensation in the throat appears when swallowing food. Sometimes the pain may begin in the teeth or they may suddenly begin to fall out.

If cancer has formed on the vocal cords, in the larynx, then, first of all, the patient cannot help but notice hoarseness of the voice, to the point that it may completely disappear. And as we have already said, shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, a feeling of something out of the ordinary in the throat are other symptoms of throat and larynx cancer.

Like any other malignant tumor, laryngeal cancer has several stages:

Stage 0, in which a biopsy reveals the presence of abnormal cells in the mucosal area that do not extend beyond the mucosal border.

• Stage 1 - a tumor in the form of a small ulcer located in the mucous membrane area. This may be a section of the larynx that does not affect the hoarseness of the voice.
• Stage 2 - the tumor can develop into the entire larynx. Symptoms of throat cancer include initial hoarseness of the voice, but no metastasis to the lymph nodes is observed.
• Stage 3 - laryngeal tumors spread to adjacent laryngeal tissues, which can cause voice changes and an increase in lymph nodes up to 3 cm.
• Stage 4 - the tumor grows to large sizes and covers the entire larynx, growing into neighboring tissues: the esophagus, lungs, and thyroid gland. Metastases may also occur in distant organs.

It is important that before treatment the doctor thoroughly examines the existing symptoms of throat cancer and determines the stage of development of the patient's disease.

Throat cancer is a very serious disease that is not to be trifled with. Therefore, when the first signs and symptoms appear, do not delay visiting a doctor. It is better to see a specialist as soon as possible than to suffer from all the bitter consequences later.

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Treatment throat cancer

Laryngeal cancer can be treated in two ways: conservatively and with the help of surgical intervention. Today, sufficient attention is paid to the patient's quality of life. Therefore, at the early stages of the development of cancer of the middle and supraglottic section, treatment begins with conservative methods - radiation and chemotherapy. In terms of quality and results, it is on par with surgical. This therapy does not impair the functions of the larynx, and patients can continue working.

What is included in the concept of "Combined treatment"? This is, as a rule, a combination of surgery and radiation therapy. It is carried out on patients with large, as a rule, tumors and the development of the cancer process. Preoperative radiation therapy makes it possible to reduce the size of the tumor and helps to reduce the development of cancer cells. However, if the doses of radiation therapy are large, the wound may heal even worse.

Radiation therapy

In this therapy, irradiation of laryngeal cancer is carried out from the lateral fields and covers the entire larynx and the area of regional metastasis. General reactions include weakness, headaches and nausea. Local reactions may occur in the larynx and on the skin of the neck. Patients may experience pain when swallowing, swelling of the neck tissue. With changes in the larynx, inflammation and swelling of the mucous membrane and vocal cords occur. This can lead to even more hoarseness, and an even smaller lumen of the larynx. Therefore, if a large tumor is detected in a patient, he must have a tracheostomy (a tube is inserted into the trachea at a place located below the tumor itself, through which the patient can breathe freely, it is removed after treatment). With radiation therapy, the sound production function does not change for the worse, and after a person has been treated, the sonorous voice is completely restored.

Chemotherapy

It is carried out only in conjunction with radiation therapy and surgical treatment. For this, platinum preparations are used, mainly cisplatin. It is necessary to be checked by a specialist: in the first year - monthly, in the second year - once every 3 months, from 3 to 5 years - once every 6 months, and after 5 - once a year.

Chemotherapy, based on the use of drugs, helps to defeat cancer. Chemotherapy is part of the complex treatment of laryngeal cancer, which is prescribed in 2 cases:

1. Before surgery or before radiation therapy. As a result of its use in this case, the size of the tumor can be significantly reduced.
2. After surgery or after radiation therapy. Its main goal is the final destruction of any remaining cancer cells.

But both are very cruel methods of treatment, which can give their complications in the future. All this affects not only malignant cells, but also other healthy organs of the person. During chemotherapy, drugs enter the blood. During radiation therapy, which is aimed at damaging cancer cells, it can also affect healthy cells, which can negatively affect the body as a whole.

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Operation

Operations can be completely different. Part of the larynx can be removed. But doctors do everything possible to preserve the respiratory function and voice. In case of large tumors, the larynx is removed completely, after such operations breathing occurs through a tracheostomy and the person is deprived of a sonorous voice. In order to fully restore speech, it is necessary to work with a speech therapist. In this lesson, patients are taught to make a sound with the help of air swallowed into the stomach. Such speech allows the patient to communicate with other people and even return to a normal lifestyle, work. In addition, special silicone voice prostheses are used.

Prevention

In order to reduce the risk of laryngeal cancer, you need to follow some of your doctor's recommendations.

1. Each method of treatment, no matter what the patient chooses, requires a difficult course of treatment and periodic disease prevention.
2. The main causal factors of throat cancer and many other oncological diseases, such as: lip cancer, oral cavity, esophagus, are alcohol and smoking, their increased consumption. Therefore, first of all, you need to give up harmful ones. This will reduce the risk of the appearance and development of cancerous formations.
3. It is necessary to exclude spicy, salty and very hot dishes from your diet. On the contrary, eat more vegetables and fruits. Every day you need to take care of your oral cavity, reduce your time in the sun, use personal protective equipment if you have throat diseases.

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Forecast

Symptoms of throat cancer develop slowly. As a rule, metastases, if they develop, then in distant areas. and even then very rarely. Therefore, in the initial stages of laryngeal cancer, the prognosis is relatively favorable.

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