Does throat cancer affect your speech?

Surgery or treatment for head and neck cancer may cause changes to your mouth (lips, teeth, tongue, floor of mouth, cheeks, palate) and/or throat (pharynx, larynx), which may affect your ability to speak and/or swallow. These changes may be temporary or lasting and can have an impact on your daily life.

Can cancer affect your speech?

Speech changes depend on where your cancer is, and the type of treatment you have. It is more common after: tongue cancer. soft palate or lip cancer.

Does cancer cause loss of speech?

The ability to talk can be affected by surgery or radiation therapy for head and neck cancer. This may be because of side effects such as swelling and irritation, because of a tracheostomy or laryngectomy, or because other structures have been removed.

What are the last stages of throat cancer?

Signs of approaching death

• Worsening weakness and exhaustion.
• A need to sleep much of the time, often spending most of the day in bed or resting.
• Weight loss and muscle thinning or loss.
• Minimal or no appetite and difficulty eating or swallowing fluids.
• Decreased ability to talk and concentrate.

Can radiation cause speech problems?

Radiation technique was significantly associated with psychosocial speech problems (less problems in patients treated with IMRT). Swallowing and (to a lesser extent) speech problems in daily life are frequently present after chemoradiation therapy for head and neck cancer.

Can radiation affect your speech?

During your treatment you are likely to notice a change to the way your voice sounds. This is because radiotherapy damages the delicate surface of the vocal cords which stops them vibrating properly. The lining of your throat will also become sore and inflamed and it may feel too uncomfortable to speak.

Does radiation affect your speech?

Changes to speech and voice If you have had an operation or radiotherapy to your head and neck area, your speech is likely to sound different. You may have difficulty making certain sounds or saying some words. People may not be able to easily understand what you are trying to say.

How does throat cancer affect your body?

Throat cancer can affect the body differently depending on the part of the throat where cancer develops. Cancer of the voice box can cause pain in the ears or pain when swallowing. If cancer affects the salivary glands, it can cause swelling near the jaw and chin and pain, numbness or paralysis of the facial muscles.

Where can throat cancer spread to?

Squamous cell head and neck cancers don’t usually spread to other body organs. But they can spread to lymph nodes (also called lymph glands) in the neck. Sometimes, the first sign of cancer that a person notices is a swollen (enlarged) lymph node in the neck.

Can chemo affect speech?

Summary: Patients who have received high doses of chemotherapy may find it harder to express themselves verbally, according to new research. Speech difficulties among cancer patients who received chemotherapy treatment were two times higher than among those who did not.