Cancer Of the Larynx

Larynx Cancer (Throat Cancer)

Cancer Of The Larinx

What is the larynx?

The larynx is an organ at the front of your neck. It is also called the voice box. It is about 2 inches long and 2 inches wide. Below and behind the larynx is the esophagus.

The larynx has two bands of muscle that form the vocal cords. The larynx has three main parts:

The top part of the larynx is the supraglottis.

Your vocal cords are in the glottis.

The subglottis connects to the windpipe.

The larynx plays a role in breathing, swallowing, and talking. The larynx acts like a valve over the windpipe. The valve opens and closes to allow breathing, swallowing, and speaking:

Breathing: When you breathe, the vocal cords relax and open. Swallowing: The larynx protects the windpipe. When you swallow, a flap called the epiglottis covers the opening of your larynx to keep food out of your lungs. Talking: The larynx produces the sound of your voice. Your tongue, lips, and teeth form this sound into words.

What is cancer?

Cancer begins in cells, the building blocks that make up tissues. Normally, cells grow and divide to form new cells as your body needs them. When cells grow old, they die, and new cells take their place.

New cells form when the body does not need them, and old cells do not die when they should. These extra cells can form a mass of tissue called a growth or tumor. Growths on the larynx also may be called nodules or polyps. Not all growths are cancer. Benign growths are not cancer:

They are rarely life-threatening.

Usually, benign tumors can be removed, and they seldom grow back.

Cells from benign tumors do not spread to tissues around them or to other parts of the body.

Malignant growths are cancer:

Cells from malignant tumors invade and damage nearby tissues and organs. Also, cancer cells can break away from a malignant tumor and enter the bloodstream or lymphatic system. That is how cancer cells spread from the original cancer (the primary tumor) to form new tumors in other organs. The spread of cancer is called metastasis. Different types of cancer tend to spread to different parts of the body.

Cancer of the larynx also may be called laryngeal cancer. It can develop in any part of the larynx. Most cancers of the larynx begin in the glottis. The inner walls of the larynx are lined with cells called squamous cells. Almost all laryngeal cancers begin in these cells. These cancers are called squamous cell carcinomas.

If cancer of the larynx spreads (metastasizes), the cancer cells often spread to nearby lymph nodes in the neck. For example, if cancer of the larynx spreads to the lungs, the cancer cells in the lungs are actually laryngeal cancer cells. The disease is called metastatic cancer of the larynx, not lung cancer. It is treated as cancer of the larynx, not lung cancer. Doctors sometimes call the new tumor "distant" disease.