Differentiate purulent tonsillitis with signs of oropharyngeal cancer

The article was professionally consulted by Specialist Doctor I Le Van Quang - Ear, Nose Throat Doctor - Department of General Surgery - Vinmec Nha Trang International General Hospital. BSCKI. Le Van Quang is an expert in the field of ENT with 15 years of experience.

Throat cancer and purulent tonsillitis both have some similar symptoms such as difficulty swallowing, sore throat or swelling in the neck, causing many people to still confuse the two diseases. Let's learn about the symptoms of each disease and how to tell them apart.

Tonsillitis is known in 2 forms: acute tonsillitis and tonsillitis. If not treated in time, it can develop into chronic tonsillitis. One of the forms of chronic tonsillitis is acute purulent tonsillitis.
Causes of acute purulent tonsillitis:
The tonsils are divided into many niches located at the intersection between the food and airways,... so it is easy to accumulate bacteria and viruses to penetrate and cause disease. The ear - nose - throat areas have a close relationship with each other, so if the ear or nose part is sick, bacteria can easily attack the throat and cause acute purulent tonsillitis. People with acute purulent tonsillitis that are not treated in time, or are not treated thoroughly and improperly can make the condition worse and turn into purulent tonsillitis. The change in weather, polluted living environment, ... make the body's immune system become weak, making the tonsils vulnerable to damage and leading to the formation of acute purulent tonsillitis. Some bad living habits: often using alcohol, tobacco, drinking cold water, eating a lot of hot spicy food, not having clean oral hygiene.

2.1 Acute purulent tonsillitis Acute purulent tonsillitis is a local complication of acute tonsillitis that is not detected early and treated promptly. Some typical symptoms of acute purulent tonsillitis are:
Pus appears between the tonsils and around the tonsils Throat, sharp pain in the throat Pain spreading to the ear, painful swallowing, inability to swallow A lot of saliva, pain when opening big mouth Fever Jaw swelling... 2.2. Nasopharyngeal cancer Compared with acute purulent tonsillitis, nasopharyngeal cancer manifestations are considered to be much more "sophisticated" because most of the symptoms are borrowed from surrounding organs such as ears, nose, and nerves. menstruation, lymph nodes... and usually only appear in the late stages, making patients subjective.
At any stage, the level of influence of oropharyngeal cancer is also greater than purulent tonsillitis and much more dangerous at the stage where the cancer has metastasized to organs such as the brain, bones, lungs...
Some common symptoms of nasopharyngeal cancer are:
Headache: at first a dull ache that does not go away, then severe pain and spreads to both sides Tinnitus: at first mild tinnitus on one side, then on both sides, Hearing loss is greatly reduced Nasal congestion: in advanced stages of cancer, the patient may have continuous stuffy nose, nosebleeds, pus and blood mixed with lymph nodes in the jaw: the lymph nodes are small at first, the snake can move but then gradually harden and adhere to the neck, pain is felt and then spreads to many other places Cranial nerve paralysis: occurs when nasopharyngeal cancer spreads to the base of the skull, causing poor coordination of organs. Nasopharyngeal cancer has a few differences, such as rapid weight loss, but is also often very faint. The biggest difference, however, is the duration of symptoms. If the above symptoms persist within 2 weeks, then it is best to see a doctor for the most accurate results..
Early stages of throat cancer have very faint symptoms and very severe symptoms. difficult to detect. Symptoms only manifest when the disease has progressed to a more advanced stage and the patient's quality of life will be greatly reduced. The best way to detect the disease at an early stage is to go for cancer screening at least twice a year.

Depending on the specific condition of the disease, the doctor will give a separate treatment plan for each patient. For patients with acute purulent tonsillitis, treatment options may be medication or surgical removal of the tonsils.
For patients with nasopharyngeal cancer, radiotherapy and chemotherapy are often indicated. The mainstay of treatment in nasopharyngeal cancer is radiation therapy. Depending on the stage, the doctor evaluates the patient's condition (stage I, II, III, IV...) from which he will decide how to treat. When nasopharyngeal cancer is detected at an early stage, surgery is performed. However, most nasopharyngeal cancers come with treatment in stages III and IV, so surgery is almost impossible and radiation therapy is the first measure. When the disease is suspected, it is best to go to a specialist hospital to do the necessary tests.
Whether acute purulent tonsillitis or nasopharyngeal cancer greatly affects your health and quality of life. Changing a healthy lifestyle, exercising regularly and building a scientific nutrition is a way for you to protect your health against diseases around.
Otolaryngology - Vinmec International General Hospital specializes in examining and treating common ENT diseases such as: tonsillitis, sore throat, tinnitus, non-allergic rhinitis, throat cancer ; tumors of the head, face and neck, congenital malformations of the ear, nose and throat area by common surgical methods.