All you need to know about Head and Neck Cancer

Dr Sashikanth Jonnalagadda 
April 14, 2021

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The Head and Neck is a very complex region of the body and consists of several subsites like the Oral Cavity, Oropharynx (Throat), Larynx (voice box), Thyroid, Paranasal Sinuses, and Neck Lymph Nodes. Cancer that occurs in the Oral Cavity (mouth), throat, nose, paranasal sinuses, salivary glands, and other areas of the head and neck are considered Head and Neck cancer.  
  
Squamous cell carcinomas arise in the lining of the mouth, nose, and throat, account for the majority of these cancers.  
  
Because of the widespread use of Tobacco (gutka, pan masala, and betelnut), oral cancers are the most common form of cancer in India and it accounts for roughly 30 percent of all cancers in the body. Oral Cancers and other Head and Neck Cancers are also increased by smoking and alcohol consumption. 
  
Approximately 20 people out of 1,00,000 population are diagnosed with Head and Neck Cancer.  
  
It is very important to pay attention to symptoms such as non-healing ulcers in the mouth or throat, bleeding from mouth or nose, persisting sore throat, breathing or swallowing difficulty, change in voice, and swellings in the neck and face region. 
  
Head and neck tumors affect the patient's ability to chew, swallow, speak and breathe. As a result, early detection of the tumor is critical in order to increase the patient's chances of survival as well as his or her ability to speak and swallow normally during treatment. 
  
Treatment Options 

These symptoms need to be evaluated with a concerned Head and Neck Onco Surgeons who helps patients to make an informed decision about their treatment options.  The first step is to obtain a tissue sample from the affected area, which is done by a biopsy. The type of cancer will be confirmed by Histopathology, which will decide further management. 
 
The next step is staging, which entails deciding how far cancer has spread. It will be obtained by Radiological Imaging such as CT, MRI, and, on rare occasions PET scan. 
 
Cancers can be classified into four stages based on the extent of their spread. Usually, head and neck cancers are treated with surgery followed by adjuvant treatment such as radiation and chemotherapy, if necessary. The tumor and neck nodes are removed during surgery. Plastic surgery procedures are used to reconstruct the shape and function of the removed organ, allowing the patient to appear and function as normally as possible. 
  
After the treatment, the patient is kept on close surveillance for 3 to 5 years with a follow-up with his or her Head and Neck Surgeon. 

 

By Dr. Sashikanth Jonnalagadda is the Consultant - ENT, Head and Neck Oncology at American Oncology Institute

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News Network
November 21,2024

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Hamas says the Israeli regime’s sole objective lies in “erasing” the entirety of the Palestinian population from across the Palestinian territories.

Khalil al-Hayya, a ranking official with the Gaza Strip-based Palestinian resistance movement, made the remarks to the Palestinian al-Aqsa TV on Wednesday.

“The occupation targets everyone—it strikes hospitals, civil defense, women, children, and the elderly,” he said, adding that the regime sought to “empty Gaza of its residents, and displace the Palestinian people to fulfill its dreams of building a Zionist Jewish state across all of Palestine.”

The remarks came amid the regime’s October 2023-present war of genocide on the coastal sliver that has so far claimed the lives of nearly 44,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children.

“This unprecedented aggression in modern times evokes scenes from the dark ages of human history, having crossed all red lines and exceeded every expectation of brutality in the modern era,” the Palestinian official lamented.

He also regretted that the regime had added “systematic and dangerous starvation to its aggression, falsely claiming before the world that it allows 250 [aid] trucks into Gaza daily. In reality, the number of trucks is far fewer.”

Hayya, meanwhile, regretted that “scenes of children torn apart, women screaming over their children, and heart-wrenching destruction have failed to stir enough humanity to stop these crimes.”

He decried the United States for vetoing the United Nations Security Council’s resolutions that are aimed at bringing about a potential ceasefire in the war, saying this indicated Washington’s “partnership in the aggression” and a simultaneous siege that the Israeli regime has been enforcing on Gaza.

Addressing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the official asserted that, despite what the Israeli official is after, Hamas would not hand over the regime’s captives “without [the regime’s] stopping the war.”

He called Netanyahu “the main obstacle” in the way of cessation of the aggression, saying the Israeli premier “blocks any progress for political reasons,” and citing his preventing conclusion of a ceasefire agreement in July.

Hayya also warned that the regime sought to expand the war beyond Gaza, but asserted that its goals are “impossible and will never happen.”

“Today, the enemy exposes its true intentions of extermination and displacement, but it will fail,” he stressed.

“The Palestinian people are resilient and will not surrender, as they believe in their humanitarian and political cause. The enemy and its allies will not succeed in achieving their goals. This steadfast people will endure, and the occupation will not prevail against them.”

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News Network
November 7,2024

Udupi, Nov 7: In a tragic turn of events, a young woman, Prasanna, aged 29, allegedly died by suicide on Wednesday, struggling to cope with the demands of work and motherhood after the birth of her daughter, according to police reports.

Prasanna had married on December 2, 2022, and was the mother of a 10-month-old baby girl. Her husband works in Bengaluru, while she lived with her in-laws, who, according to her family, treated her kindly.

In a complaint, Prasanna's mother revealed that her daughter often called her, expressing deep concerns over her readiness for motherhood. Despite receiving supportive care from her family, Prasanna felt unprepared and overwhelmed by the balance of work and home life that early motherhood required.

Her family shared that she had been undergoing treatment, but between 10 a.m. and 1:45 p.m. on Wednesday, she allegedly took her own life at her husband’s residence. The Karkala Rural Police Station has registered a case and is conducting further investigations.

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News Network
November 21,2024

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Shares of Adani Group companies lost about $28 billion in market value in morning trade on Thursday after US prosecutors charged the billionaire chairman of the Indian conglomerate in an alleged bribery and fraud scheme.

Gautam Adani's flagship company Adani Enterprises tumbled 23 per cent, while Adani Ports, Adani Total Gas, Adani Green, Adani Power, Adani Wilmar and Adani Energy Solutions, ACC , Ambuja Cements and NDTV fell between 20 per cent and 90 per cent.

Adani group's 10 listed stocks had a total market capitalisation of about $141 billion at 0534 GMT, compared to $169.08 billion on Tuesday.

US authorities said Adani and seven other defendants, including his nephew Sagar Adani, agreed to pay about $265 million in bribes to Indian government officials to obtain contracts expected to yield $2 billion of profit over 20 years, and develop India's largest solar power plant project.

Adani Green in a statement on Thursday said the US Justice Department had issued a criminal indictment against board members Gautam Adani and Sagar Adani and the Securities and Exchange Commission had issued a civil complaint against them.

The US Justice Department also included Adani Green board member Vneet Jaain in the criminal indictment, it said.

Adani Green's units had decided not to proceed with the proposed US dollar denominated bond offerings due to developments, it added.

"Investors will shy away from Adani Group stocks ... and that's what this sharp selling is signifying," said Saurabh Jain, assistant vice president of retail equities research at SMC Global Securities.

"This could hurt the credibility of the group and maybe borrowing costs will rise," he said.

The indictment comes nearly two years after US shortseller Hindenburg Research alleged that Adani had improperly used tax havens and was involved in stock manipulation, allegations the conglomerate denied.

Also in early Asian trading on Thursday, Adani dollar bonds slumped, with prices down 3c-5c on bonds for Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone. The falls were the largest since the Adani Group came under a short-seller attack in February 2023.

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