Multiple cancers of the head and neck

Maedica (Bucur). 2013 Mar;8(1):80-5.

Abstract

Multiple head and neck cancers are not rare entities and according to studies in the literature, their incidence is increasing. The emergence of multiple cancers is explained by the phenomenon of "field cancerization". Patients with cancer of the upper digestive and respiratory tract develop most often a second malignancy, usually in the upper aero-digestive tract and among them, those with larynx cancer ranks first among patients with multiple cancers. In the literature and in practice, we met rare combination of multiple cancers, associations that appear to be "random", cannot be explained by any of the hypotheses developed: exposure to carcinogens, genetic susceptibility, and immunodeficiency or cancer treatments after index tumor. Follow-up of patients who have had a head and neck cancer and periodic control are important for early detection of multiple cancers.

Keywords: field cancerization; head and neck cancers; multiple cancers.