Causes of head and neck cancer

Although the incidence is falling in the UK, the incidence is still high world wide and the environmental factors that predispose are the main reason for this large geographical variation in incidence.

 

Alcohol and more importantly tobacco smoking are two environmental factors that are closely related to the incidence of squamous head and neck cancer, and the incidence of oral cancer is further enhanced by chewing betel nuts or exposure to spices and poor oral hygiene.

 

Various other environmental factors that have been associated with a higher incidence of head and neck cancer are exposure to chromium and nickel dusts and various leather workers and wood workers have rarely been found to have a higher incidence of cancers of the nose or nasal sinuses.

 

Nasopharynx cancer, which is a slightly unusual subtype of the squamous carcinomas of this region is related in its incidence to exposure to salty fish in the diet and EB virus infection, according to studies in the Far East where the incidence is very high.

 

Squamous head and neck cancer is more common in males.

 

It is worth making the point that the predisposing environmental factors (e.g. smoking) for the development of squamous cancer in one head and neck site are those predisposing to the development of similar primary tumours in other sites and also for lung cancer.