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Excluding superficial skin
cancers, but including cancer of the larynx and thyroid, it is conservatively estimated
that about 60,000 people are diagnosed with head and neck cancer annually - about 5% of
all cancers diagnosed in the United States. There are more than half a million survivors
of oral, head, and neck cancer living in the United States today. |
Anatomy of the head and
neck
The head and neck can be divided into several different regions:
1.nasopharynx: area behind the nose
2.pharynx: hollow tube at the upper part of the throat that starts behind the nose, runs
down to the neck, and becomes part of the esophagus, the tube that goes to the
stomach
3.oral cavity: lips, floor of mouth, tongue, buccal mucosa (lining inside the lips and
cheeks), gingiva (gums) and hard palate (bony top of the mouth), salivary glands (parotid,
submandibular and minor salivary glands)
4.oropharynx: base of tongue, tonsillar region, soft palate and pharyngeal walls
5.hypopharynx: bottom part of the throat
6.larynx (voice box): supraglottic, glottic (vocal cords), and subglottic regions
7.nasal cavity: paranasal sinuses (ethmoid and maxillary)
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