概述

喉癌是指咽喉(咽部)或声匣(喉)出现的癌性肿瘤。

咽喉是一根从鼻腔后部延伸至颈部的肌管。喉癌最常起始于覆盖咽喉内部的扁平细胞。

声匣位于咽喉的正下方,也容易受喉癌所累。声匣由软骨组成并包含声带,声带振动使您在说话时可以发声。

咽喉癌的类型

咽喉癌是形成于咽喉部的癌症(咽癌)和声匣部的癌症(喉癌)的总称。

虽然大多数咽喉癌都涉及相同类型的细胞,但特定的术语被用来区分咽喉癌始发部位。

  • 鼻咽癌始于鼻咽,即鼻子后方的咽喉部位。
  • 口咽癌始于口咽部,即口腔后方的咽喉部位,包括扁桃腺。
  • 下咽癌(喉癌)始于下咽(喉咽)部,即咽喉的下部、食管和气管正上方。
  • 声带癌始于声带。
  • 声门上喉癌始于声匣上部,包括影响会厌的癌症。会厌是一块阻止食物进入气管的软骨。
  • 声门下癌始发于声带下方的声匣部位。

症状

喉癌的体征和症状可能包括:

  • 咳嗽
  • 声音发生变化,比如声音嘶哑和口齿不清
  • 吞咽困难
  • 耳痛
  • 无法愈合的肿块或溃疡
  • 咽喉疼痛
  • 体重减轻

何时就诊

如果您发现任何持续存在的新体征和症状,请预约医生就诊。大多数喉癌症状并不是癌症所特有,所以医生可能先调查其他更常见的原因。

病因

当咽喉中的细胞发生基因突变时,便会发生喉癌。这些突变使细胞不受控制地繁殖,在健康细胞正常死亡后继续生存。不断累积的细胞会在咽喉中形成肿瘤。

尚不清楚是什么原因导致引发喉癌的基因突变。但是,医生已确认了一些可能会增加风险的因素。

风险因素

增加患喉癌风险的因素包括:

  • 烟草使用,包括抽烟和嚼烟
  • 过量饮酒
  • 病毒感染,包括人乳头状瘤病毒(HPV)和 EB 病毒
  • 蔬果摄入不足
  • 胃食管反流病(GERD)
  • 工作中接触有毒物质

预防

目前还没有预防喉癌的有效方法。但是为了降低患喉癌的风险,您可以:

  • 戒烟或请勿开始抽烟。如果您抽烟,请戒烟。如果您不抽烟,请勿开始抽烟。戒烟可能很难,所以需要帮助。医生可能会讨论药物、尼古丁替代产品和咨询等多种戒烟方案的益处和风险。
  • 若无法彻底戒酒,则适度饮酒。如要饮酒,请适度。对于健康成人而言,这意味着女性每天最多喝一杯,男性每天最多两杯。
  • 选择富含水果蔬菜的健康饮食。果蔬中的维生素和抗氧化剂可能降低患喉癌的风险。食用各类颜色鲜艳的果蔬。
  • 保护自己免受 HPV 感染。一些喉癌被认为是通过性传播感染人乳头状瘤病毒(HPV)造成的。您可限制性伴侣数量并在每次性生活时戴避孕套,从而降低染上 HPV 的风险。向医生咨询 HPV 疫苗,接种疫苗可降低患喉癌和其他 HPV 相关癌症的风险。

Sept. 15, 2022

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