CARCINOMA OF THE LARYNX DURING PREGNANCY

The case of a 33-year-old pregnant female with a large tumor of the la rynx is presented. At initial clinical examination the patient present ed with a history of painful swelling of her left neck and hoarseness that had persisted for more than 6-months. The pregnancy was in its 28 th week. A large squamous cell carcinoma of the left vocal cord was fo und that had spread into the left pyriform sinus and infiltrated soft tissues of the thyroid cartilage. The simultaneous occurrence of laryn geal cancer and pregnancy was associated with much concern, since deci sions regarding treatment of the mother had possible direct consequenc es for the foetus. In particular, close interdisciplinary cooperation was required between the otorhinolaryngologist, obstetrician, and anes thesiologist. This resulted in the birth of a healthy child and a happ y mother after laryngectomy. However, the size of the tumor allowed no disease-free survival for more than one year.