Stage 4 symptoms of nasopharyngeal carcinoma

Nasopharyngeal cancer is very common around us. Many people have symptoms of this disease. After the onset of the disease, the throat is particularly painful, which brings them a lot of pain. The onset of this disease will bring more symptoms. This is the beginning of our understanding of this disease. Let’s learn about the main symptoms of nasopharyngeal cancer.

Nasopharyngeal carcinoma is a malignant tumor with a high incidence, but if it is discovered early, the treatment effect is relatively ideal. After regular treatment of early nasopharyngeal carcinoma, the 5-year survival rate can reach more than 90%. After nasopharyngeal carcinoma occurs, some symptoms will appear, such as stuffy ears, tinnitus and hearing loss on one side, or blood in sputum after getting up in the morning. Some patients have some atypical symptoms, such as headaches, blurred vision, etc.; in the late stage, a lump is found in the neck and vision is decreased, headaches are aggravated, and facial paralysis and other symptoms occur.

(I) Respiration of blood in the nose: There may be bleeding symptoms in the early stage, which is manifested as blood in the sputum after suctioning the nose or blood in the nose when blowing the nose. In the early stage, there is only a small amount of blood in the sputum or nose, which may appear and disappear at times. In the late stage, there is more bleeding, and there may be nosebleeds.

(ii) Tinnitus, hearing loss, and a feeling of blockage in the ear: When nasopharyngeal carcinoma occurs in the lateral wall of the nasopharynx, the lateral fossa, or the upper lip of the Eustachian tube opening, the tumor compresses the Eustachian tube, which can cause unilateral tinnitus or hearing loss, and catarrhal otitis media. Unilateral tinnitus or hearing loss, and a feeling of blockage in the ear are one of the early symptoms of nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

(III) Headache: It is a common symptom, accounting for 68%. It can be the first symptom or the only symptom. In the early stage, the headache is not fixed in location and is intermittent. In the late stage, it is a persistent migraine with a fixed location. The cause of this may be caused by neurovascular reflex or stimulation of the first branch of the trigeminal nerve in early stage patients. In the late stage, it is often caused by tumors destroying the skull base and spreading inside the skull to affect the cranial nerves.

(IV) Diplopia: Due to the invasion of the abducens nerve by the tumor, double vision is often seen when looking outward. Invasion of the trochlear nerve often causes inward strabismus and diplopia, which accounts for 6 to 19 percent of cases. It is often damaged at the same time as the trigeminal nerve.

(V) Facial numbness: refers to numbness of the facial skin. Clinical examination shows decreased or absent pain and tactile sensation. Tumor invasion of the cavernous sinus often causes damage to the first or second branch of the trigeminal nerve; tumor invasion of the oval foramen, the anterior area of ​​the styloid process, and the third branch of the trigeminal nerve often causes numbness or paresthesia of the skin in the front of the auricle, the temporal region, the cheek, the lower lip, and the chin. Facial skin numbness accounts for 10 to 20 percent.

(VI) Nasal congestion: Nasal congestion may occur when the tumor blocks the posterior nostril. When the tumor is small, the nasal congestion is mild. As the tumor grows, the nasal congestion becomes more severe, usually unilateral. If the tumor blocks both posterior nostrils, bilateral nasal congestion may occur.

For nasopharyngeal carcinoma, the family members and medical staff should have a comprehensive and correct understanding of the disease. They should communicate with the patients more often to eliminate their fear of the disease, encourage them more, strengthen their confidence in treatment, and actively cooperate with the doctor's treatment. They can listen to music and read books to relax and maintain an optimistic and cheerful attitude. For nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients, the end of treatment does not mean the cure of the disease. Therefore, even if they are discharged from the hospital, they should follow the doctor's advice and go to the hospital for regular checkups to have a comprehensive understanding of the patient's physical condition. Once abnormalities are found, they should go to the hospital for treatment in time.

Develop good eating habits and adjust your diet on a daily basis. Try to eat light, easily digestible, nutritious foods. Eat more fresh fruits and vegetables. Avoid spicy, rough, hard, moldy, pickled and other foods containing carcinogens. As long as your body allows, do more physical exercise to strengthen your physical fitness.

The above knowledge introduces the symptoms of nasopharyngeal cancer. The occurrence of this disease will bring a lot of pain to patients and cause serious damage to their throat. Friends need to pay attention to nasopharyngeal cancer. We must clearly understand the symptoms of this disease in our lives.