‘Head and neck cancer most common among Indian men’

The ‘Head and Neck cancer’ is among the top most cancers affecting Indian men and the third most common ailment among women, a study by Indian Council of Medical Research has found.

The ‘Head and Neck’ cancers or Head Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma (HNSC) usually begin in the squamous cells that line the moist, mucosal surfaces inside the head and neck (for example, inside the mouth, nose and throat).

The study further mentions that oral cancer is the commonest among all HNSC cancers.

Around 50 per cent of the affected people die within 12 months of its diagnosis. Throat Cancer (Pharynx and Larynx) is next to oral cancer in terms of prevalence, it said.

The HNSC cancer has been linked with increased consumption of tobacco including gutka and pan masala.

As per a 2014 study conducted by Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and World Health Organization on the impact of banning of tobacco in India, 90 per cent of respondents (gutka users) desired that the government should ban the manufacturing, sale and distribution of all forms of smokeless tobacco.

The study was conducted with 1,001 gutka users and 458 tobacco product retailers in eight states.