LARYNGECTOMY FAQ'S

Why must I be seen so often if you "got it all"?
(by Glenn E. Peters M.D., Director, Division of Otolaryngology
Head and Neck Surgery, University of Alabama at Birmingham,
Birmingham, Alabama, USA)

Why is it necessary for me to see you so often? Didn't you tell me you "got it all"?

First of all, I don't think that the term, "get it all", applies in the surgical treatment, or any other form of treatment for that matter, when you are talking about cancer. Cancer is a diverse population of cells some of which are programmed to spread throughout the body. This can occur when a tumor is just barely or not even clinically detectable or when the tumor is massive. It just depends on the genetic make up of any given tumor. By the way, Not all tumors necessarily have these groups of cells. Therefore, even though a cancer can be completely removed from the head and neck area, that does not mean that it may not have the capability to show up somewhere else in the future. To screen for this, we get yearly chest X-Rays, blood work when indicated, and check for things like persistent bone or skeletal pain.

Next, we know that whenever someone develops a cancer in the head and neck there is between a 10 to 20 percent chance that they will get another cancer in the region. This also includes the esophagus and the lung. We screen for these tumors by frequent physical examinations in the clinic. The head and neck is a wonderful area to work in for both the physician and the patient in that 80 percent of the area can be examined directly in the clinic without having to rely on expensive X-Rays, CTscans, MRIs , and the like. Also, the general rule is that if your tumor is going to recur or a new one develop, 80 to 90 percent of these will do so within the first two years. That is why we see you more often during that time.

So, besides being a pleasure to see you and keep up with your goings-on, we are really trying our best to catch a problem in its very earliest stages; that is, when we have the absolute best chance to take care of it.