Head and Neck Cancer

Head and neck cancer refers to several types of cancers that affect the head and neck areas of the body. The most common causes of head and neck cancer are tobacco and alcohol use. These cancers are treatable if caught early, and are easily preventable.

Head and neck cancer includes cancers of the:

• Oral cavity: lips, tongue, gums, the lining of the cheeks and lips, bottom and top of the mouth, and behind the wisdom teeth. The most common type of head and neck cancer.

• Salivary glands: These produce the saliva that keeps your mouth and throat moist. The main glands are on the bottom of the mouth and near the jawbone.

• Sinuses: the hollow spaces in the bones surrounding the nose.

• Nasal cavity: the hollow area inside the nose.

• Tonsils.

• Throat (pharynx).

• Voicebox (larynx).

• Ears.

• Lymph nodes in the upper part of the neck.

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Symptoms 

Head and neck cancer can be hard to diagnose because symptoms are often mild. These symptoms include:

• A mouth or tongue sore that does not heal.

• A white or red patch on the gums, tongue, or lining of the mouth.

• A persistent sore throat.

• Hoarseness.

• Swelling in the jaw, neck, or side of the face. This may cause dentures to fit poorly.

• Frequent sinus infections that don’t respond to antibiotics.

• Neck pain that won't go away.

• Frequent headaches.

• Pain in the upper teeth.

• Bleeding through the nose or in the mouth, or blood in the saliva.

• Trouble swallowing.

• Persistent earaches.

• Trouble breathing or speaking.

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Ear disorders

Health conditions that can affect your nose include:

• Ear infection (otitis media): Ear infections most commonly occur in your middle ear. Otitis media develops when bacteria and viruses become trapped in your middle ear. This type of infection is more likely to affect children than adults. Ear infection treatment usually involves antibiotics. In severe cases, ear tubes may be necessary.

• Eustachian tube dysfunction: Your eustachian tubes connect your middle ears to your throat. When you yawn, sneeze, or swallow, your eustachian tubes open to equalize the pressure inside of your ears. If these tubes become clogged, it’s called eustachian tube dysfunction. Symptoms include tinnitus, muffled hearing, a sensation of fullness, and possible ear pain.

• Swimmer’s ear (otitis externa): Swimmer’s ear is an ear canal infection caused by bacteria or fungi. Getting water in your ear can cause this condition. Swimmer’s ear can also occur if you get hair spray or other irritants inside of your ear canal. Additionally, it’s common for people to injure their ear canal with cotton swabs. (Note: When ear cleaning, you should never place cotton swabs inside of your ear canal.)

• Ruptured eardrum: If you get a hole in your tympanic membrane, it’s called a ruptured eardrum. (Your eardrum separates your outer ear from your middle ear.) Infection, trauma, loud sounds, or foreign objects in your ears can cause a ruptured eardrum. In most cases, a ruptured eardrum will heal on its own in a few weeks. But sometimes, it requires surgical repair, such as tympanoplasty.

• Otosclerosis: Otosclerosis is when abnormal bone remodeling occurs in your middle ear. Bone remodeling is a normal lifelong process in which existing bone tissue replaces itself with new bone tissue. When this process doesn’t go as expected, however, it can cause health problems. With otosclerosis, the tiny bones inside of your middle ear (the malleus, incus, and stapes) become hardened and stop vibrating. As a result, sound doesn’t travel properly. Surgery is usually necessary to treat otosclerosis.

• Perichondritis: Perichondritis occurs when the skin of your outer ear becomes infected. This condition is usually the result of injury or trauma, such as piercings, contact sports, or ear surgery. Antibiotics are necessary to treat perichondritis. In rare cases, you may need surgery to drain any pus from the area.

• Vestibular neuritis: Vestibular neuritis occurs when the vestibular nerve in your inner ear becomes inflamed. People with this condition experience a sudden vertigo attack, which is often accompanied by nausea and vomiting. Your healthcare provider will treat vestibular neuritis with medication and possible physical therapy.

• Meniere’s disease: This chronic condition affects your inner ear. Common symptoms include dizziness, vertigo, and a feeling of fullness in the ear. Most of the time, Meniere’s disease improves on its own over time. However, in severe cases, surgery might be necessary.

• Ear injury: Cuts, fractures, and blunt force trauma can cause ear injury. If damage is severe, surgery may be necessary to address the problem. This may include surgery to preserve hearing or cosmetic surgery to improve the appearance of your ear.

• Ear tumors: Ear tumors may be benign (noncancerous) or malignant (cancerous). Types of noncancerous ear tumors include keloids, sebaceous cysts, osteomas, and exostoses (bone growths). Noncancerous ear tumors usually require surgical removal.

• Cancer: Cancers that can affect your ears include melanoma, basal cell carcinoma, and squamous cell carcinoma. Treatment for these conditions depends on several factors, including the type and stage of cancer, and whether or not it has spread to other parts of your body.

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Nose disorders

Health conditions that can affect your nose include:

• Allergic rhinitis: Allergic rhinitis (hay fever) can cause irritation, sneezing, runny nose or stuffy nose.

• Deviated septum: A deviated septum occurs when your septum is off-center, either at birth or from injury. It can cause breathing problems, nasal congestion and headaches.

• Enlarged turbinates: Allergens and irritants can make the turbinates swell, which can block airflow and affect normal breathing.

• Injury or trauma: Your nose can be broken or injured, similar to any other external part of your body.

• Infection: An infection can cause many of the same symptoms as allergic rhinitis. Examples include sinus infections and the common cold.

• Nasopharyngeal cancer: Your nose can be the site of head and neck cancer.

• Nasal polyps: Nasal polyps are bumps that can block airflow or prevent your nose from filtering air.

• Nasal valve collapse: Often caused by an accident or trauma to your nose, nasal valve collapse is the most common cause of nasal obstruction.

• Nosebleed (epistaxis): Nosebleeds occur when a blood vessel in your nose breaks. They are common, and most aren’t serious.

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Throat disorders

Health conditions that can affect your throat include:

• Hoarseness: Noticeable change in the voice usually lasting for a few weeks or more, hoarseness can have many possible causes. It often results in a voice that sounds strained, breathy, or raspy. Some people also experience a noticeable change in pitch and tone or have some level of throat irritation. Causes of hoarseness can vary widely, from viral infection to cancer.

• Vocal cord paralysis: Vocal cord paralysis is characterized by a vocal fold that is not able to move. Typically, the focal cords vibrate and produce sound by moving from an open to a closed position. When vocal cord paralysis occurs, one vocal fold is not able to move to the closed position. This prevents the vocal cords from coming together and results in symptoms such as hoarseness and difficulty swallowing.

• Recurrent respiratory Papillomatosis: It is a disease that can cause voice, breathing, and swallowing issues. Caused by the human papilloma virus (HPV), RRP produces wart-like growths. When located in the throat, these growths may cause changes to the voice and breathing difficulties. Treatment involves surgery to remove the growths and may include medication to help prevent them from returning.

• Zenker's Diverticulum: Zenker's diverticulum is a pouch or diverticulum, that occurs in the throat near the base of the neck. Over time, the pouch enlarges in size as the muscles below it tighten excessively; this causes swallowing to become increasingly difficult. Often experienced by older and elderly patients, this condition is quite bothersome but highly treatable following a proper diagnosis.

• Spasmodic Dysphonia: It is a result of abnormal contractions in one or more of the muscles of the vocal cords. This can cause a voice that sounds, shaky, or strained. Affected individuals may even sound a little like they are being strangled or that they are choking while speaking. Those with spasmodic dysphonia often make a concentrated effort in order to speak. This can make conversations appear forced.

• Subglottic Stenosis: It is a scar-like narrowing of the windpipe below the vocal cords (subglottis). When occurring in adults, subglottic stenosis can result in a high-pitched sound made while breathing in or out that's sometimes misdiagnosed as asthma. Surgery is necessary to remove the scar and increase the size of the windpipe.

• Vocal cord nodule: A vocal cord nodule is a benign (non-cancerous) vocal cord growth that is often the result of overuse or misuse. The nodules are very similar to callouses that form within the vocal cords. Nodules typically occur on both vocal cords.

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