Throat Cancer Symptoms - What to Look For & How it is Diagnosed

When looking for throat cancer symptoms, one of the things that you have to be mindful of is hoarseness or a sore throat that doesn't heal in two weeks.
That or an unexplained cough that refuses to go away.
Along with this may come neck pains as well as swelling in the region of the neck.
Difficulty in swallowing as well as coughing up blood can also become a problem, which may in turn lead to unintentional weight loss.
Abnormal, high pitched breathing sounds may eventually become a problem.
What few people may know is that throat cancer can actually either be head and neck cancer or esophageal cancer.
Head and neck cancer can from the upper aerodigestive tract, like the lips, oral cavity, nasal cavity, pharynx and larynx.
Esophageal cancer, on the other hand, derives its name from its singular location, the esophagus.
When diagnosing throat cancer symptoms, your doctor may ask for a series of tests in order to be certain.
After all, some symptoms are triggered by other conditions that may not be as severe.
A laryngoscopy will be the first of this, a type of exam that is done by examining the throat with the aid of a tube with a small lighted camera affixed to it.
A cranial CT scan and/or a cranial MRI are next in line.
These follow-up tests are to determine whether or not the cancer has spread to the lymph nodes found in the neck.
Sometimes, a biopsy may be done in order to diagnose throat cancer symptoms.
In doing this, a small piece of tissue from what is assumed to be the cancerous area is removed and run through microscopic examination.
This will help diagnose exactly what type of throat cancer is being dealt with and which area it originated from.