What are nasopharyngeal tumors?
A nasopharyngeal tumor is a growth that forms in the nasopharynx, or the uppermost portion of the throat that is found behind the nasal cavity. The nasopharynx serves as a passageway for air from the nose to the throat and eventually to the lungs. A tumor in the nasopharynx may be either benign or malignant.
What causes NPC?
There are 2 substances that greatly increase the risk of developing NPC: Tobacco. Tobacco use, including cigarettes, cigars, pipes, chewing tobacco, and snuff, is the single greatest risk factor for head and neck cancer. About 85% of head and neck cancer is linked to tobacco use.
What causes Lymphoepithelial carcinoma?
Lymphoepithelial carcinoma, which is much more common in Eskimo and Inuit people, is associated with the Epstein-Barr infection and has a slightly better outcome.
What is a nasopharynx?
The nasopharynx is the upper part of the throat (pharynx) that lies behind the nose. It’s a box-like chamber about 1½ inches on each edge. It lies just above the soft part of the roof of the mouth (soft palate) and just in back of the nasal passages.
What is Stage 3 nasopharyngeal?
Stage 3 nasopharyngeal cancer means one of the following: The cancer has spread to nearby bones and air cavities (sinuses). It might also have spread to lymph nodes on one or both sides of the neck, or behind the throat, but not anywhere else. The affected lymph nodes are not more than 6 cm across.
How is NPC diagnosed?
Nasopharyngeal cancer (NPC) is most often diagnosed when a person goes to a doctor because of symptoms such as a lump in the neck or stuffy nose, but no signs of a cold. The doctor will take a history and do an exam. The patient may then be sent to see an ear, nose and throat (ENT) specialist.
Can a nasopharyngeal mass be benign?
Tumours of the nasopharynx can be non cancerous (benign) or cancerous (malignant). Non cancerous nasopharyngeal growths are rare.
What is Lymphoepithelial tissue?
Lymphoepithelial lesions consist of a dense lymphoplasmacytic infiltrate that destroys the acini while the salivary ducts persist. The surrounding myoepithelial cells and the ductal epithelium proliferate by forming the so-called epimyoepithelial islands.
What is Lymphoepithelial cyst?
Abstract. Lymphoepithelial cysts are benign, slowly growing unilocular or multilocular lesions that appear in the head and neck. They are also called Branchial cyst. The head and neck sites are the salivary glands(more commonly parotid and rarely submandibular gland) and the oral cavity (usually the floor of the mouth) …
What is stage 4 nasopharyngeal carcinoma?
Stage IV nasopharyngeal cancer is divided into stages IVA and IVB. In stage IVA, (1) cancer has spread to the brain, the cranial nerves, the hypopharynx, the salivary gland in the front of the ear, the bone around the eye, and/or the soft tissues of the jaw.
What is the treatment for nasopharyngeal carcinoma?
The main treatment for NPC is radiation therapy. It is often given in combination with chemotherapy. This approach may be called concomitant chemoradiotherapy. Surgery for NPC is occasionally used, mainly to remove lymph nodes after chemoradiotherapy or to treat NPC that has come back after initial treatment.