After diagnosing a patient with cancer of the glottis, a doctor will need to determine what type of cancer it is, the grade of the tumor, and the stage of the cancer. Doctors often establish a preliminary disease stage based on physical exam and findings on imaging that help to identify the extent of disease. In patients who undergo surgery, a more well-defined disease stage is determined based on pathology after surgery.
Type
The most common type of glottic cancer is squamous cell carcinoma, making up 95% of all laryngeal cancers. Squamous cell carcinoma is a cancer that starts from abnormal cells that line the larynx.
Less common types of glottic cancer include:
- Salivary gland cancers: There are minor salivary glands located under the lining of the throat. This is why cancers that are typically seen in salivary glands can arise in the glottic region. These include mucoepidermoid carcinomas, adenocarcinomas, and adenoid cystic carcinomas, to name a few. See salivary gland cancer for more information.
- Lymphoma: The throat is lined with lymphoid cells. Major sites of lymphoid tissue include the adenoids in the nasopharynx (part of the throat behind the nose) and the tonsils in the oropharynx. However, there are also small amounts of lymphoid tissue lining the larynx, and rarely a lymphoma can arise from the supraglottis.
- Mucosal melanoma: These cancers come from the type of skin cells that give skin its color. These cells are also present in the lining (mucosa) of the aerodigestive tract. Overall, mucosal melanoma of the larynx is rare, and tends to occurs in the supraglottis more commonly than in the glottis.
Other types of glottic cancer
- Sarcomas such as chondrosarcoma, liposarcoma, synovial sarcoma, and malignant fibrous histiocytoma.
- Neuroendocrine tumors such as neuroendocrine carcinoma, paraganglioma, carcinoid tumors, and small cell carcinoma.
- Cancer spread (metastasis) from another site.
- Benign tumors such as lipoma, neurofibroma, adenoma, chondroma, and granular cell tumors.
