The number of throat cancer patients is increasing rapidly, one of the biggest reason behind is the huge population of smokers and drinkers.The throat cancer has different types according to location it forms in and different stages according to the size of it.

The post here provides brief introduction of throat cancer stages and its types.

Throat cancer types

The types of throat cancer have been categorized into two kinds:

• Squamous cell carcinoma

  This type of cancer develops in the layer of the cells which lines the throat. These cells can be seen through a microscope and look like scales.

• Adenocarcinoma

  This type of cancer forms in the glandular cells of the throat.

  Other than these there are two more kinds of throat cancers which comes in the category of head and neck cancer.

• Pharyngeal cancer

  This type itself has three different kinds

  1. Nasopharynx cancer:

     develops in the upper part of the throat.

  2. Oropharynx cancer:

     develops in the middle part of the throat.

  3. Hypopharynx cancer:

     develops in the bottom part of the throat.

• Laryngeal cancer

  This is the type of throat cancer that develops in the larynx (scientific name of voice box).

Throat cancer stages

Throat cancer stages has been categorized into four different levels according to the size and the locations it has been spread to.

• Stage 1

  In this stage of throat cancer, the cancer has just started and is small in size (7 cm or less). The cancer here is limited to the throat only.

• Stage 2

  The cancer starts growing larger in size, however, remains in the throat only. No sign of cancer spreading to any lymph node or distant organ.

• Stage 3

  In the third throat cancer stage, the cancer has spread through the throat and grown to the nearby tissues or organ. Cancer may or may not have grown to any lymph node nearby.

• Stage 4

  The stage has been categorized into two different levels

  1. Stage 4-A

     The cancer starts growing to the nearby organs and tissues. The size of the tumor has increased and the cancer has not spread to any lymph node (or has spread to maximum one lymph node).

  2. Stage 4-B

     The tumor has grown into the deep areas or tissues and also has grown to the distant organs (in most cases, to the lungs). It may or may not have been spread into the lymph nodes nearby.

Detecting throat cancer in its early stage can be crucial as it gives much needed time for treatment. Treating cancer in the initial stage is less painful and less expensive; it also increases the chances of getting better with less extensive treatment.