What is laryngeal cancer?

喉癌是throat cancer这会影响您的喉。喉是您的语音盒。它包含软骨和肌肉，使您能够说话。

This type of cancer can damage your voice. When not treated quickly, it may spread to other parts of your body.

根据National Cancer Institute, head and neck cancers account for 4 percent of all cancers in the United States. Survival rates for this cancer depend on its specific location and how early it’s diagnosed.

根据美国癌症学会的说法 90 percent of people with stage 1 cancers of the glottis survive for five years or more. The glottis is the part of your larynx that contains your vocal cords.

相比之下， 59 percent 在Glottis或Supraglottis上方的结构1阶段癌症的人中，生存了五年或更长时间。Supraglottis包含Epiglottis，吞咽时会关闭喉头。它可以防止食物进入肺部。

Unlike other types of cancer, the symptoms of laryngeal cancer are fairly easy to detect. Some of the most common signs include:

  • hoarse voice
  • 呼吸困难
  • excessive coughing
  • cough with blood
  • 颈部疼痛
  • sore throat
  • 耳痛
  • 吞咽食物困难
  • 颈部肿胀
  • 颈部肿块
  • 突然的体重减轻

These symptoms don’t always occur with cancer. However, you should see a doctor if any of these symptoms last longer than one week. The key to effective cancer treatment is an early diagnosis.

喉癌通常是当健康细胞维持损害并开始过度生长时发生。这些细胞可以变成肿瘤。喉癌是起源于您的语音盒的肿瘤。

The mutations that damage cells in your larynx are often due to smoking. They can also be the result of:

  • heavy alcohol use
  • poor nutrition
  • human papillomavirusexposure
  • 免疫系统问题
  • 工作场所接触毒素，例如石棉
  • certain genetic diseases, such asFanconi贫血

某些生活方式因素会增加您患喉癌的风险。这些包括：

  • smoking
  • 咀嚼烟草
  • not eating enough fruits and vegetables
  • consuming large quantities of processed foods
  • 饮酒
  • exposure to asbestos
  • a family history of throat cancer

Diagnosing laryngeal cancer begins with your medical history. If you have potential cancer symptoms, your doctor will examine you carefully and begin a series of tests.

执行的第一个测试通常是喉镜检查。您的医生将使用小范围或一系列镜子检查您的喉。

如果您的医生看到任何异常，他们可能会执行biopsy。实验室可以测试该小组织样品的癌症。

Imaging tests aren’t a common method to diagnose laryngeal cancer. However, tests such as aCT扫描or MRI scan can help your doctor tell if cancer has spread.

暂存

If you receive a cancer diagnosis, the next step is staging. Staging shows how far the cancer has spread. Oncologists generally use the TNM system to stage laryngeal cancer:

  • T是指原发性肿瘤的大小，如果它已经入侵周围的组织。
  • Nis used to identify how far the cancer has spread to lymph nodes.
  • Mindicates whether the cancer has metastasized or spread into other organs or more distant lymph nodes.

根据 American Cancer Society ，喉癌最常见于肺部。

小肿瘤没有转移或扩散to your lymph nodes are the least serious cancers. As tumors grow, they become more dangerous. Survival rates greatly decrease once cancer metastasizes or spreads to your lymph nodes. Such cancers are more advanced or later stage.

治疗将取决于癌症的程度。

您的医生可能会在最早的治疗阶段使用放射疗法或手术。手术是切除肿瘤的常见方法。癌症手术的风险并不少见。如果癌症有时间传播，则更有可能发生。您可能会经历：

  • difficulty breathing
  • 吞咽困难
  • neck disfigurement
  • a loss or change of voice
  • 永久性颈部疤痕

然后，放射治疗试图杀死任何剩余的癌细胞。您的医生可能会单独开处方放射治疗以治疗小型癌症。

Chemotherapy is another type of cancer treatment. It can:

  • destroy remaining cancer cells after surgery and radiation
  • treat advanced cancer along with radiation when surgery isn’t appropriate
  • treat symptoms of advanced cancers that can’t be fully removed

Your doctor might recommend an initial treatment other than surgery. This usually happens when a tumor is small enough to make surgery unnecessary. It may also occur if it’s too late for surgery to be fully effective. Either way, the goal is to preserve your quality of life.

More advanced stages of laryngeal cancer often require a combination of surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy.

解决对您的语音盒的损害

手术期间，您可能会失去部分或所有语音盒。但是，这并不意味着您将不再说话。语音疗法可以帮助您学习新的沟通方式。

如果您的医生删除了整个语音盒，其他手术可以恢复您的声音。您的声音听起来不一样。但是，大多数人可以恢复使用许多程序进行交谈的能力。

Esophageal speech is a method in which a therapist teaches you to swallow air and send it back up through your mouth.

A tracheoesophageal puncture creates an easier way to send air from the lungs to the mouth. Your doctor will connect your windpipe and food pipe with something called a stoma. They then place a valve at the front of your throat. Covering the valve with your finger helps you talk.

An electrolarynx is an electrical device that creates a mechanical voice.

Alternative remedies

在喉癌治疗期间，您可能会发现其他疗法有帮助，例如：

  • 冥想
  • yoga
  • acupuncture
  • massage therapy

为了降低喉癌的风险，您可以改变生活方式：

  • If you smoke, reduce or eliminate tobacco use in all forms.
  • 如果您要喝酒精，只需适度。
  • Use proper safety equipment if exposed to asbestos or other toxins at work.
  • Eat a healthy diet, including富含抗氧化剂的食物。

The key to treatment success for laryngeal cancer is to begin treatment as early as possible. Survival rates are much higher when cancer hasn’t metastasized or spread to your lymph nodes.