You can reduce your risk of throat cancer by not smoking, not chewing tobacco and limiting alcohol use

Throat cancer refers to cancerous tumors that develop in your throat (pharynx), voice box (larynx) or tonsils.

Your throat is a muscular tube that begins behind your nose and ends in your neck. Your voice box sits just below your throat and is also susceptible to throat cancer. The voice box is made of cartilage and contains the vocal cords that vibrate to make sound when you talk. Throat cancer can also affect the piece of cartilage (epiglottis) that acts as a lid for your windpipe. Tonsil cancer, another form of throat cancer, affects the tonsils, which are located on the back of the throat.

You can reduce your risk of throat cancer by not smoking, not chewing tobacco and limiting alcohol use.

You cannot pick up the signs of cancer quickly enough most of the times. Some cancers are so deceptive that they cannot be detected until the later stages. Cervical cancer for example, is very hard to detect. However, throat cancer symptoms are rather obvious if you remain watchful. We all come under the cancer risk scanner now. So it is both smart and feasible to look out for throat cancer symptoms.

There are many causes of throat cancer. Smoking and chewing tobacco is among the main causes of throat cancer. If you feel that you come in the high risk category for cancer, keep your eyes open for these early throat cancer symptoms.

Difficulty In Swallowing

Difficulty in swallowing is one of the first signs of cancer. Cancer grows as a tumour in your throat. And if you have an additional growth in your throat, it will obstruct the passage of food or even make it difficult to swallow just like that.

Roughness In The Larynx

You must have had a rough feeling in your throat just before you come down with an infection. It is a feeling of discomfort that is hard to ignore. If you have started developing throat cancer, you will feel this roughness 24x7.

Voice Changes

If the cancer is growing around your vocal chords then it will cause obvious voice changes. Even booming baritones can be reduced to feeble whining voices if you have a cancerous growth in your throat. Consult your doctor as soon as you see the first signs of an apparent voice change.

Persistent Cough

When you have a persistent cough that makes your voice hoarse, it is called smoker's cough. Developing a smoker's cough is one of the first throat cancer symptoms. And if you ignore this symptom, you stand the risk of developing cancer at any point of time. Every one who has a smoker's cough does not have cancer. But do you really want to count on getting lucky?

Strange Breathing Sounds

When you breathe, the air passes through your pharynx and then goes on to your trachea. One of the throat cancer symptoms is that you make strange, often whistling hoarse sounds while you breathe.

If you notice any of these throat cancer symptoms, rush to the doctor immediately. There is no antidote for lost time when it comes to treating cancer.

Your treatment options are based on many factors, such as the location and stage of your throat cancer, the type of cells involved, your overall health, and your personal preferences. Discuss the benefits and risks of each of your options with your doctor. Together you can determine what treatments will be most appropriate for you.

Radiation therapy

Radiation therapy uses high-energy beams, such as X-rays, to deliver radiation to the cancer cells, causing them to die. Radiation therapy can come from a large machine outside your body (external beam radiation). Or radiation therapy can come from small radioactive seeds and wires that can be placed inside your body, near your cancer (brachytherapy).

For early-stage throat cancers, radiation therapy may be the only treatment necessary. For more advanced throat cancers, radiation therapy may be combined with chemotherapy or surgery. In very advanced throat cancers, radiation therapy may be used to reduce signs and symptoms and make you more comfortable.

Surgery

The types of surgical procedures you may consider to treat your throat cancer depend on the location and stage of your cancer. Options may include:

·         Surgery for early-stage throat cancer. Throat cancer that is confined to the surface of the throat or the vocal cords may be treated surgically using endoscopy. Your doctor may insert a hollow endoscope into your throat or voice box and then pass special surgical tools or a laser through the scope. Using these tools, your doctor can scrape off, cut out or, in the case of the laser, vaporize very superficial cancers.

·         Surgery to remove all or part of the voice box (laryngectomy). For smaller tumors, your doctor may remove the part of your voice box that is affected by cancer, leaving as much of the voice box as possible. Your doctor may be able to preserve your ability to speak and breathe normally. For larger, more-extensive tumors, it may be necessary to remove your entire voice box. Your windpipe is then attached to a hole (stoma) in your throat to allow you to breathe (tracheotomy). If your entire larynx is removed, you have several options for restoring your speech. You can work with a speech pathologist to learn to speak without your voice box.

·         Surgery to remove all or part of the throat (pharyngectomy). Smaller throat cancers may require removing only part of your throat during surgery. Parts that are removed may be reconstructed in order to allow you to swallow food normally. Surgery to remove your entire throat usually includes removal of your voice box as well. Your doctor may be able to reconstruct your throat to allow you to swallow food.

·         Surgery to remove cancerous lymph nodes (neck dissection). If throat cancer has spread deep within your neck, your doctor may recommend surgery to remove some or all of the lymph nodes to see if they contain cancer cells.

Surgery carries a risk of bleeding and infection. Other possible complications, such as difficulty speaking or swallowing, will depend on the specific procedure you undergo.

Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy uses chemicals to kill cancer cells. Chemotherapy is often used along with radiation therapy in treating throat cancers. Certain chemotherapy drugs make cancer cells more sensitive to radiation therapy. But combining chemotherapy and radiation therapy increases the side effects of both treatments. Discuss with your doctor the side effects you're likely to experience and whether combined treatments will offer benefits that outweigh those effects.

Targeted drug therapy

Targeted drugs treat throat cancer by taking advantage of specific defects in cancer cells that fuel the cells' growth. Cetuximab (Erbitux) is one targeted therapy approved for treating throat cancer in certain situations. Cetuximab stops the action of a protein that's found in many types of healthy cells, but is more prevalent in certain types of throat cancer cells.

Other targeted drugs are being studied in clinical trials. Targeted drugs can be used in combination with chemotherapy or radiation therapy.

Rehabilitation after treatment

Treatment for throat cancer often causes complications that may require working with specialists to regain the ability to swallow, eat solid foods and talk. During and after throat cancer treatment, your doctor may have you seek help for:

·         The care of a surgical opening in your throat (stoma) if you had a tracheotomy

·         Eating difficulties

·         Swallowing difficulties

·         Stiffness and pain in your neck

·         Speech problems