Epidemiology and demographics of head and neck cancers: a hospital based retrospective study in Andhra Pradesh

Background : Head and Neck cancers (HNC) in India make up 25-30 percent of all cancers and are the most common cancer in Indian men and the third most common cancer in women. The aim of this study was to study the demographic profile, sites involved and the histopathological patterns of HNC at a tertiary care hospital in Sri Potti Sriramulu Nellore district, Andhra Pradesh. Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective study conducted in Department of Otolaryngology, Narayana Medical College and Hospital, SPS Nellore, Andhra Pradesh. The data was collected from the years 2015 to 2018. Only histopathologically confirmed cases of malignancies of Head and Neck were included in the study. Results: A total of 75 cases were included in the study. There were 53 (70.66%) male and 22 (29.33%) female patients. The mean age of male and female patients was 56.45±11.46 and 51.68±9.20 years respectively. The most common sites HNC, in both male and female patients, were found to be larynx (36%) followed by oral cavity (33.33%). It was also observed that squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) was the most common histopathological variant amongst all the HNC. All the patients in this study had one or more associated risk factors for HNC. Conclusion: There is a spurt of HNC cases in SPS Nellore. It is important to focus on prevention and early detection of HNC and also have a dedicated cancer hospital to cater the needs of the patients.