Radiation Therapy for Laryngeal and Hypopharyngeal Cancers

Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays or other types of radiation to kill cancer cells. Radiation therapy is sometimes used as the main treatment, often in combination with chemotherapy (chemoradiation), for laryngeal and hypopharyngeal cancers. If this treatment works for you, you will not need to have your larynx taken out by surgery (laryngectomy).

Radiation therapy or chemoradiation is also used before surgery to shrink the tumor and after surgery to help prevent the cancer from coming back (recurring). In addition, radiation therapy can treat some of the symptoms of cancer if the tumor cannot be completely removed by surgery.

Radiation therapy can be given externally or internally, or, in some cases, both externally and internally.

• External beam radiation therapy (EBRT) - Radiation from a high-energy x-ray machine (linear accelerator) outside the body is focused on the cancer cells. EBRT can harm both the cancer cells and nearby healthy tissue. Most people are treated with EBRT for a few minutes 5 days a week for 5 to 7 weeks as an outpatient. This technique is used more often for laryngeal and hypopharyngeal cancers than internal radiation therapy.
• Intensity-Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT) – IMRT, an external radiation technique, is an advanced form of high-precision radiotherapy.  It allows for the precise delivery of radiation doses to a malignant tumor or to specific areas within the tumor with minimal damage to surrounding tissue.   
• Internal radiation therapy (brachytherapy or interstitial radiation therapy) - Tiny pellets (or “seeds”) that contain radioactive materials are injected into your bloodstream and guided to the tumor. Brachytherapy lets the doctor use a higher dose of radiation than EBRT. This type of treatment involves a one-time procedure.
  

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