Which diseases should laryngeal cancer be differentiated from?

Laryngeal cancer is common in middle-aged men, accounting for 1% to 5% of all tumors in the body. It is one of the most common malignant tumors in the otolaryngology department. Some of the symptoms of laryngeal cancer are very similar to those of some diseases. Clinically, laryngeal cancer should be differentiated from the following diseases.

1. Nodular laryngitis: This disease is similar to the early symptoms of laryngeal cancer, manifested by small gap hoarseness, worse at night, lighter voice in the morning, dryness and slight pain in the throat, increased laryngeal secretions, and sore throat when speaking.

2. Laryngeal tuberculosis: Patients with laryngeal tuberculosis have varying degrees of sore throat. The main symptom is hoarseness, which is mild at first and gradually worsens. In the late stage, they may completely lose their voice. They often have sore throats, which worsen when swallowing. The sore throat is particularly severe when the perichondrium is invaded. Patients with extensive laryngeal lesions may experience difficulty breathing due to granulation hyperplasia and mucosal edema.

3. Laryngeal keratosis and leukoplakia: The main symptoms are a foreign body sensation in the throat, sometimes itching, and severe coughing that may produce white keratinized material. Laryngeal leukoplakia can occur in any part of the laryngeal mucosa, but is more common in the vocal cords and ventricular cords. Laryngoscopy examination shows plaques or patches, which are generally single and about a few millimeters in size.

4. Laryngeal plasmacytoma: This disease is common in middle-aged and elderly men and can occur in various parts of the larynx, mostly the epiglottis, vocal cords, ventricular cords and laryngeal ventricles. Patients have symptoms of hoarseness and dyspnea. Laryngoscopy shows diffuse submucosal tumor tissue infiltration in the larynx. The lesions often extend beyond the larynx and involve the pharynx. Pathological biopsy is of differential significance.