Some kind of neck and head cancer is commonly referred to as throat cancer. Usually, it is squamous cell carcinomas. As different practitioners and researchers define the affected area of the throat in different ways, its precise usage is varied.

In throat cancer the tissue lining the hollow organs of the body begins to develop a tumor, like in other squamous cell carcinomas. Major properties of these cancer cells are:

• Killing the healthy cells
• Multiplying rapidly
• Causing death unless they are stopped or slowed down in time

In India, oesophagus is the commonest site of gastro­intestinal cancer after the oral cancer.

There are some medical practitioners who define cancer of the throat as pharynx cancer. This includes cancer of the hypopharynx (bottom of the throat), the nasopharynx (the area behind the throat), and the oropharynx (the area at the base of the tongue including tonsils and the soft palate). Few of the doctors define cancer of the throat to be included the larynx (voice box), and vocal cords.

Causes

• Smoking
• Chewing tobacco
• Heavy alcohol consumption
• Poor diet resulting in vitamin deficiencies
• Weakened immune system
• Asbestos exposure
• Prolonged exposure to wood, dust, or paint fumes
• Exposure to petroleum industry chemicals

Treatment:

Following are the treatment methods used for throat cancer. The type of treatment to be used depends on location of the cancer in the throat area and the extent to which the cancer has spread. Furthermore, a patient has the choice of selecting from the workable treatments for himself.

Surgery:

In surgery for throat cancer, cancerous cells are removed. However, it is not advised to the patient whose cancer is near the larynx as it can result in the patient being unable to speak. The use of the surgical method for throat cancer is commonly recommended to remove some of the lymph nodes to prevent further spread of the disease.

Radiation Therapy:

It is the most common and effective treatment method for throat cancer. A new type of radiation therapy is IMRT (intensity-modulated radiotherapy), which, unlike the older types, focuses more precisely on the destruction of fewer healthy cells. It reduces accidental damage to the many important unaffected areas of the throat and mouth.

Chemotherapy:

Chemotherapy is used not to cure the cancer as such, but to provide an inhospitable environment for metastases so that the cancer will not establish in other parts of the body. Agents for chemotherapy typically are:

• Carboplatin
• Taxol
• Erbitux