Symptoms

As a rule, rapidly growing carcinomas of the upper respiratory and digestive tract, depending on the location, give individually different symptoms in severity.

Oral cavity and pharynx

Carcinomas in the area language very often cause pain, but can also be manifested only by a burning sensation, ulceration or visible swelling.

• Carcinomas in the floor of the mouth  or carcinomas in the area mandible can, in addition to the above symptoms, also cause problems when wearing dentures.
• Tumors located in throatoften cause difficulty swallowing or foreign body sensation. In addition, they can be manifested by recurrent bleeding - this applies primarily to large tumors. Often, by this time, the tumor has already metastasized to the cervical lymph nodes. At the same time, a third of patients go to the doctor due to an unclear swelling in the soft tissues of the neck.
• Incomprehensible pain in the throat and ear, without visible pathology in the ears, can be caused by a deep-seated carcinoma of the pharynx.

In the future, cancer in the upper respiratory and digestive tract can lead to weight loss and swelling in the neck.

Larynx

Carcinomas of the larynx, based on the above anatomical regions, are divided into ligamentous, supraligamentous and subglottic.

• Typical for vocal cord carcinomas is persistent hoarseness. A sore throat may join, the need "clear your throatand chronic cough. In advanced stages, patients suffer from respiratory distress with noisy breathing and even feeling short of breath.
• In contrast, patients with supraglottic carcinoma complain of incomprehensible swallowing disorders, pain (sometimes radiating to the ear) and a vague feeling of a foreign body in the throat.
• Subglottic carcinomas often go unnoticed for a long time until, due to their growth, respiratory disorders appear or hoarseness of voice appears due to germination in the vocal cords.

Carcinomas in the area of the vocal cords can often be detected in time, as already small carcinomas in this area lead to persistent hoarseness. Therefore, the cause of hoarseness, lasting more than 2 - 3 weeks, should be clarified by examination by an ENT doctor. As with all cancers, the fact that most early-detected tumors are treatable is significant, especially if they have not yet spread to regional lymph nodes.