How Are Laryngeal and Hypopharyngeal Cancers Treated?

Your stage of cancer and your overall health will determine the method your doctor recommends for treating your illness. The main treatments for laryngeal and hypopharyngeal cancers are surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy.

Your doctor will work with you to choose the best treatment for your cancer based on:

• Your age, overall health, and medical history
• Extent of the disease
• Stage of the cancer
• Your tolerance of specific medicines, procedures, or therapies
• Expectations for the course of the disease
• Your opinion or preference

All treatments have benefits and risks. You and your doctor should carefully balance the potential benefits of any cancer treatment with its potential risks.

After the cancer is diagnosed and staged, your physician will recommend a treatment plan.

Treatment may include:

• Surgery - The main surgery for laryngeal and hypopharyngeal cancers is resection, or surgical removal, of the tumor and some of the normal tissue around the tumor. The surgeon will remove some of your lymph nodes (neck dissection) if they contain or could contain metastatic cancer. After surgery to remove cancer of the larynx or hypopharynx, you may need additional surgery (such as pedicle or free flap reconstruction) to preserve your appearance and allow you to eat, breathe, and talk properly.
• Chemotherapy - Chemotherapy drugs kill cancerous cells. In most cases, chemotherapy works by stopping cancer cells from growing or reproducing, which kills the cells. Chemotherapy is sometimes used (often in combination with radiation therapy) as the main treatment for laryngeal and hypopharyngeal cancers. It is also used before surgery (with or without radiation therapy) to shrink the tumor (neoadjuvant therapy) or after surgery (adjuvant therapy) to reduce the chance that the cancer will come back, and to treat tumors that cannot be removed by surgery. The main chemotherapy drugs for laryngeal and hypopharyngeal cancers are Adrucil® or Efudex® (5-fluorouracil or 5-FU) and Platinol® (cisplatin).
• Targeted therapies – Targeted therapies are designed to treat only the cancer cells and minimize damage to normal, healthy cells. Cancer treatments that “target” cancer cells often have fewer side effects and are more effective than traditional chemotherapy drugs and radiation treatments. This is because chemotherapy and radiation therapy cannot tell the difference between cancer cells and healthy cells, so they often harm healthy cells and this can cause side effects.
• Radiation therapy - Radiation therapy uses high-energy radiation to kill cancer cells and shrink tumors. Radiation therapy for cancers of the larynx and hypopharynx is usually delivered externally using a machine outside the body, although it can also be delivered internally by inserting a radioactive substance into the body. Radiation therapy is sometimes used with chemotherapy as the main treatment for laryngeal and hypopharyngeal cancers instead of surgery or to shrink the tumor before surgery. It is also used to prevent cancer from coming back after surgery and to treat cancer symptoms.
  

This content has been reviewed and approved by Myo Thant, MD.