Treatment Method Improves Survival for Advanced Laryngeal Cancer

Treating Cancer of The Larynx

Identifying early on who will benefit from non-surgical treatment allows patients to get most effective therapy

Chemotherapy and radiation can be effective at treating cancer of the larynx, or voice box, without removing the organ that controls speech and swallowing. But it doesn't work for everyone.

Researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center found that determining early into treatment which patients would benefit from the chemoradiation treatment and which would be better off having surgery led to better survival rates than typically expected for this type of cancer.

"Approximately 30 percent to 40 percent of patients with advanced laryngeal cancer will not be cured with chemotherapy and radiation. The survival rates for such patients have traditionally been poor. That's why these patients should be identified as early as possible.