Does Radiation Therapy swallow up the Swallowing Abilities when Laryngeal Area is spared? A Preliminary Study

Abstract

Introduction: Certain treatment strategies result in some amount of side effects though their effects on the disease for which they have been recommended is satisfactory. One such treatment option is radiation therapy for cancer individuals. Though it’s commonly known that radiation therapy of head and neck cancer would possibly cause swallowing difficulties, extend of its effects and recovery is unknown. Therefore the aim of the study is to determine effects of radiation therapy on swallowing abilities in nonlaryngeal head and neck cancer individuals. Methods and Material: Swallowing measures was carried out using a subjective tool, Manipal Manual of Swallowing assessment (MMSA) which was administered on pre-treatment, immediate post treatment and one month after post treatment on individuals undergoing radiation therapy for non-laryngeal head and neck cancer. Study was carried out in a Multi-speciality disciplinary hospital setup for a duration of two years. The study followed a prospective study design Statistical analysis: Statistical analysis was done using ANOVA repeated measures and paired t test. Results: Statistical significant mean difference was seen for all the parameters on three time points of the assessment. Conclusions: The study reveals that radiation therapy significantly affects swallowing abilities of the individual, and these difficulties are of short term duration with recovery seen after a period of time.