[A statistical study of clinical cases of malignant tumors first manifested by vocal cord paralysis]

One of the most important problems in dealing with vocal cord paralysis is to clarify the cause of paralysis. In those case where the definite cause is unknown, it is possible that an occult type of malignant tumors exists along the course of the vagus or recurrent laryngeal nerves. For the past 16 years, 62 out of 560 cases with vocal cord paralysis were diagnosed to have malignant tumors first manifested by paralysis of vocal cord. They consisted of 25 cases of thyroid carcinoma, 18 lung carcinoma, 13 esophageal carcinoma, 3 mediastinal tumors and 3 tumors of miscellaneous origin. Among these, 36 were male and 26 were female and the mean age was 63 years old. In 40 cases, paralysis was found on the left side, in 18 on the right and bilaterally in the remaining 4. There was a marked sexual difference in the origin of malignant tumors, i.e. the incidence of lung carcinoma was higher in male with paralysis on the left side, while that of thyroid carcinoma was higher in female. In some cases with thyroid carcinoma, vocal cord paralysis was noted more than a year before the detection of the tumor. Ultrasonography of the neck, chest x-ray, CT scan of the chest, fluoroscopy of the pharyngo-esophagus should be performed for the detection of malignant tumors in cases with left vocal cord paralysis, while ultrasonography of the neck and chest x-ray should be sufficient in right paralysis, although additional fluoroscopy of the pharyngo-esophagus seemed preferable in male.