Introduction

Cancer is a severe disease, which can destroy the human body and mind forever. Throat cancer is the cancer of the pharynx and larynx. Various parts inside a human body can get affected by throat cancer, such as the oropharynx, supraglottis, glottis, subglottis, etc. Any abnormal cells that create a tumour and develop inside the larynx and pharynx lead to esophageal cancer.

What leads to throat cancer?

Till now, there is no clear cut answer to what exactly causes throat cancer; the research is still ongoing. The cancerous cells develop when genetic mutations allow the cells to grow in the human body, form tumours and starts spreading to other parts of the human body. This mostly happens when a person is highly addicted to toxic materials like alcohol, cigarettes and Pan Masala. The two most common throat cancers are Squamous cell carcinoma and Adenocarcinoma.

Symptoms

It can defer from person to person, which is why it is sometimes difficult to diagnose. Still, we have mentioned the most common ones below

  • Throat discomfort
  • Cough
  • A lump in the neck
  • Voice change
  • Difficulty in swallowing foods
  • Ear pain
  • Sudden weight loss

Why is quick treatment necessary for throat cancer?

Throat cancer is developed quickly, which is why early diagnosis and treatment is necessary. The treatment depends completely on the extent to which cancer has spread in the body and its seriousness. We have mentioned various esophageal cancer treatments below.

Surgery

It may be done with small cuts with a scalpel. It may be done by putting an endoscope tube through the mouth, or robotic techniques or with lasers. Early stages of cancer can be treated with lasers or endoscopes. For advanced cancer, parts of your pharynx or larynx may have to be removed, which may affect your ability to speak normally and breathe.

Radiation

Radiation uses high-energy rays to kill cancer cells. It’s given outside your body by a machine or inside by radioactive seeds planted near the cancer cells. Sometimes radiation is the only treatment needed to treat early-stage cancers, but it can also be used with surgery or chemotherapy to treat later-stage cancer.

Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy can kill cancer and prevent it from spreading. It is used before surgery to shrink tumours or after to keep the disease from coming back. Some of the chemotherapy drugs can make radiation work better.

Proton therapy

This radiation is done with the pencil beam method, which is directed towards the tumour.

Cancer Clinical Trials

The use of drugs and various other techniques if all the radiation process fails. Throat cancer is a very serious disease that can make a person struggle over a long time, but medical science has come up with various treatments that can save lives from this dangerous disease.