Improvement in Dysphagia with Swallow Therapy in Patients with Oral and Oropharyngeal Carcinoma who Underwent Surgery with or without Adjuvant Therapy.

Head and neck squamous cell carcinomas occur frequently with over 500,000 new cases diagnosed worldwide each year . Patients with cancers of the oral cavity, pharynx or larynx may be treated with surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy or combination of these modalities. Each treatment type may have a negative impact on post treatment swallowing function Chemo radiation therapy (CRT) has become an increasingly used treatment modality for head and neck cancer. The presence of a tumor in the head and neck region often changes speech and swallowing prior to any treatment. The nature and severity of these changes vary with the tumor site and size. The therapeutic modalities used to treat head and neck cancers also cause alterations in speech and swallowing, which affect the patient’s quality of life and ability to function in society. Key words: Dysphagia; Swallow Therapy; Oral and Oropharyngeal Carcinoma; Adjuvant Therapy