Throat cancer treatments include surgery, radiation therapy and chemotherapy. Other treatments may include targeted therapy and immunotherapy. These treatments can be used in different combinations or orders depending on many factors.
When making your treatment plan, the healthcare team thinks about your overall health and the location, size and stage of your cancer. The care team also considers your preferences. For some kinds of throat cancer, the treatment options also might depend on whether the cancer cells show signs of human papillomavirus (HPV) infection.
In general, treatments for throat cancer include:
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Surgery. The goal of surgery is to remove all of the cancer. Depending on where the cancer is, the surgeon may remove it through the mouth or through cuts in the neck or face. Sometimes both approaches are used. The surgeon also may remove lymph nodes in the neck to see whether the cancer has spread there.
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Radiation therapy. Radiation therapy treats cancer with powerful energy beams. The energy can come from X-rays, protons or other sources. During radiation therapy, you lie on a table while a machine moves around you. The machine directs radiation to precise points on your body.
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Chemotherapy. Chemotherapy treats cancer with strong medicines. Chemotherapy is often used along with radiation therapy in treating throat cancers. Some chemotherapy medicines make cancer cells more sensitive to radiation therapy.
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Targeted therapy. Targeted therapy treats cancer with medicines that attack specific chemicals in the cancer cells. By blocking these chemicals, targeted treatments can cause cancer cells to die.
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Immunotherapy. Immunotherapy for cancer is a treatment with medicine that helps the body's immune system kill cancer cells. The immune system fights off diseases by attacking germs and other cells that shouldn't be in the body. Cancer cells survive by hiding from the immune system. Immunotherapy helps the immune system cells find and kill the cancer cells.
Treatment for nasopharyngeal cancer
Nasopharyngeal cancer happens in the part of the throat that's behind the nose, called the nasopharynx. For small cancers, treatment may involve radiation therapy alone. For larger cancers, treatment usually combines radiation with chemotherapy.
If nasopharyngeal cancer keeps growing despite treatment or comes back after treatment, the healthcare team might consider other options. These might include surgery and immunotherapy.
Treatment for oropharyngeal cancer
Oropharyngeal cancer happens in the part of the throat that's behind the mouth, called the oropharynx. Small cancers may be treated with surgery or radiation. For larger cancers, treatment sometimes starts with medicines, such as chemotherapy or immunotherapy. Then surgery or radiation can treat any cancer that remains.
When oropharyngeal cancer treatment starts with surgery, sometimes other treatments are used afterward. Radiation therapy, medicines or both are sometimes used to kill any remaining cancer cells. But if the cancer is HPV-positive, small and hasn't spread to lymph nodes in the neck, more treatment may not be needed. Researchers are studying whether treatment can be reduced after surgery for some HPV-positive oropharyngeal cancers.
For advanced oropharyngeal cancers, radiation with chemotherapy can help slow the growth of the cancer in the throat. Chemotherapy, targeted therapy and immunotherapy may help slow the growth of cancer that spreads to other parts of the body.
Treatment for hypopharyngeal cancer
Hypopharyngeal cancer happens in the lower part of the throat, called the hypopharynx. Small cancers are often treated with radiation therapy or surgery. Surgery for small cancers may involve removing part of the throat and part of the voice box.
For a larger cancer, surgery may involve removing part of the throat and all of the voice box. The surgeon repairs the throat so that you can swallow and reroutes the windpipe so that you can breathe. A speech pathologist can help you learn to speak without a voice box.
Sometimes treatment for larger cancers starts with chemotherapy to shrink the cancer. Then surgery or radiation can treat any cancer that remains.
For advanced hypopharyngeal cancers, radiation with chemotherapy can help slow the growth of the cancer in the throat. Chemotherapy, targeted therapy and immunotherapy may help slow the growth of cancer that spreads to other parts of the body.
Treatment for laryngeal cancer
Laryngeal cancer happens in the voice box, also called the larynx, which sits next to the lower part of the throat. Small cancers are often treated with radiation therapy or surgery. Surgery for small cancers involves removing part of the voice box. Sometimes radiation therapy or medicines are used after surgery.
Surgery for a larger cancer might involve removing all of the voice box. The surgeon repairs the throat so that you can swallow and reroutes the windpipe so that you can breathe. A speech pathologist can help you learn to speak without a voice box.
Sometimes treatment starts with medicines, such as chemotherapy or immunotherapy. Then radiation or surgery can treat any cancer that remains.
Treatment for advanced laryngeal cancers may involve radiation with chemotherapy to slow the growth of the cancer in the throat. Chemotherapy, targeted therapy and immunotherapy may help slow the growth of cancer that spreads to other parts of the body.