Head & Neck Cancer Treatments

At Cancer Treatment Centers of America (CTCA), we believe in comprehensive care that treats the whole body, not just the disease. Your individual treatment plan will include advanced conventional head and neck cancer treatments combined with supportive cancer therapies.

An informed treatment decision will take into account the location, size and spread of the cancer, as well as your overall health. You may also want to discuss post-treatment rehabilitation and how your appearance, speech, ability to eat, and other functions may be affected.

Conventional Treatments for Head & Neck Cancer

Surgery

There are a variety of surgical procedures available for treating head and neck cancer. In some cases, the tumor can be completely removed (resected) through a surgical procedure. In other cases, surgery may be used to remove blockages or to restore functionality to tissues affected by the cancer.

Surgeries for various types and stages of head and neck cancer include: laryngectomy, pharyngectomy, tracheotomy, maxillectomy, and reconstructive procedures. Less invasive procedures, like laser surgery, may be a viable treatment option for early stage head and neck cancers.

Radiation therapies

CTCA provides advanced technologies for treating head and neck cancers. Innovative techniques, like High-Dose Rate (HDR) Brachytherapy, Intensity Modulate Radiation Therapy (IMRT), and Intraoperative Radiation Therapy (IORT), use targeted high doses of radiation to treat the tumors while helping to minimize the side effects.

HDR brachytherapy reduces the total time for treatment from weeks to days. The IMRT method uses high-tech computer imagery to map the location and dimensions of the tumors. This enables your CTCA radiation therapy team to deliver precise doses of radiation in pencil-thin beams directly to the tumor site.

IORT allows our doctors to deliver a concentrated beam of radiation directly to a tumor bed immediately after the tumor is surgically removed. This helps to increase the dose of radiation that can be given, shield the surrounding healthy tissue, and reduce the number of radiation treatments needed.

Chemotherapy

The anti-cancer drugs used in chemotherapy treatments are designed to inhibit the rapid division of cancer cells. Depending on your individual treatment plan, chemotherapy may be used before or after surgery, or in combination with radiation therapy. As part of our innovative approach to cancer treatment, we offer innovative methods for chemotherapy delivery, like metronomic chemotherapy, which may help to diminish some of the unpleasant side effects.

Complementary Therapies for Head & Neck Cancer

We understand that treatment for head and neck cancer may have both short- and long-term side effects. That's why CTCA provides complementary medicine therapies—as part of its comprehensive treatment program—to help restore your overall health and improve the quality of your life.

For example, nutrition therapy, pain management, mind-body medicine, and oncology rehabilitation aim to help you manage physical or emotional changes you may experience during treatment.

The CTCA Difference

At CTCA, we offer traditional medical treatments in combination with supportive cancer therapies—all under one roof. Your treatment plan is designed with your needs and comfort in mind. Together, you and your doctors will chart the best course of treatment for you.

If this integrated and personalized approach to head and neck cancer treatment is what you are looking for, contact one of our Oncology Information Specialists at 888-841-9129 or Chat Now to explore our head and neck cancer treatment program in more detail. Our representatives are available 24 hours a day, every day of the week.