HEAD AND NECK TUMORS IN CHILDREN

Abstract

This report is a review of 178 children with malignant head and neck tumors seen during a ten-year period at the Children's Hospital Medical Center and the Children's Cancer Research Foundation in Boston, Massachusetts. Each tumor type is analyzed to display its unique features. When a neck mass occurs, a complete ENT examination is needed to identify an occult primary in the nasopharynx, in the nose, or in some other site that is difficult to see. A total physical examination is needed to detect a systemic disease or a primary below the clavicle. Many of the tumors of the head, unfortunately, are internal and present with common symptoms, like an earache, a stuffy nose, or a headache. They only become identified when the tumor greatly enlarges or metastasizes. Treatment with surgery, cryosurgery, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy may be used alone or in various combinations of them.