Current Concepts in Head and Neck Cancer

Despite a decline in the incidence and mortality rates for nearly all major cancers over the past 20 years, those statistics for head and neck squamous cancer have remained stagnant. This lack of improvement is not explained by failure to implement the various oncologic milestones in the surgical and medical treatment of head and neck cancer over the past few decades but is probably accounted for, in part, by a continued lack of public and practitioner awareness of this disease hindering prevention and early detection. The problem is compounded by the relatively low incidence of head and neck cancer and the tendency for the disease to occur in a poorly compliant lower socioeconomic group. The current epidemiologic characteristics and management techniques will be discussed along with some possible directions to improve awareness and early detection.