This book describes the Nasopharyngeal Cancer, Diagnosis and Treatment and Related Diseases

Nasopharyngeal Cancer is one of the deadly cancer because of the difficulty in diagnosis and because it is close to the brain.

My father in law has NPC in the 1970.

Treatment was concentrated on radiotherapy at the site of the cancer.

Unlike the present gamma-ray knife treatment which can pin point the exact site of the cancer, in the past the old deep X-ray treatment could only target the area of the cancer.

The side effects of burns to the skin and clotting of arteries to the brain caused a lot of discomfort to the patient.

There is loss of smell and taste with loss of appetite.

He eventually developed a stroke from the illness or treatment and was incapacitated for 1 year before finally succumbing to the illness

At the time of my assignment to the ENT Department, there was a woman patient in the ward who was in the advanced stage of nasopharyngeal cancer and undergoing chemotherapy.

She was a teacher of 32 years of age who was mostly sick during the time there

She was emaciated with vomiting during her chemotherapy and loss of appetite.

She was always in pain because the cancer has spread to the brain

We had to give painkillers and anti-vomiting injections often in order to relieve her symptoms.

Because of the injections, she was also in a sleepy state most of the time.

She has quite a few visitors including her family and her students, most of who were dejected at the state of her condition.

One morning her bed was cleared and we know that she has succumbed to her illness in the night.

It is important to be aware of the disease and early detection for treatment to be effective.

Nasopharyngeal cancer, often referred to as NPC, happens when the cells lining the nasopharynx (area behind the nose and above the back of the throat) become abnormal and proliferate giving rise to cancer cells.

Several factors increase the risk of NPC:

Genetic predisposition

Patients with a family history of NPC, especially in first degree relatives, have an increased risk of developing NPC

Males between the ages of 20-50 from southern China and Southeast Asia are at higher risk.

Diet:

Diet such as preserved foods (salted fish, vegetables and meat) which are taken by Southern Chinese can cause a higher risk of NPC.

Cooking of such food releases toxic substances called nitrosamines into the fumes that are breathed.

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection

There is evidence that NPC patients have higher levels of the Epstein-Barr virus in their blood.

The symptoms of NPC are:

A painless lump in the neck-normally a lymph node infiltrated by cancer cells

Nose bleed or blood stained sputum

Blocking of one or both nostrils

Loss of hearing or ringing in the ear

Without a nasoendoscope, it may be hard to visualize the primary tumor in the nasopharynx, especially if the tumor is small

If a tumor is detected, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can be utilized to assess its size.

Patients may also be tested for the evidence of the Epstein-Barr virus

The main and most common treatment for NPC is radiotherapy

Present evidence indicates that the addition of chemotherapy to radiation provides a considerable survival benefit for patients with stage III and IVA NPC, and some patients with stage II NPC.

Surgery is normally reserved for cases where the cancer recurs after the early treatment

The prognosis has improved with new treatment methods

TABLE OF CONTENT

Introduction

Chapter 1 Nasophayngeal Cancer

Chapter 2 Causes

Chapter 3 Symptoms

Chapter 4 Diagnosis

Chapter 5 Treatment

Chapter 6 Prognosis

Chapter 7 Facial Palsy

Chapter 8 Lymphadenopathy

Epilogue