Laryngeal Metastatic Lesions: A Literature Review

Cancer ravages all aspects of a patient's life. In recent decades, there has been a substantial paradigm shift in the treatment of cancer with an emphasis on quality of life and patient comfort. Patients are treated holistically, a complex task given how multifaceted cancers are. Voice, a subtle indicator of patients' well-being is affected commonly by malignancies. One of the various ways by which voice is disturbed by non-laryngeal cancers is through metastasis to the larynx and adjacent areas. Metastasis to the larynx is rare but well-documented. If not diagnosed in a timely fashion, it can have devastating consequences on patients from life-threatening airway obstruction to progressive dysphonia that erodes their quality of life. Metastatic lesions of the larynx usually appear submucosal with intact overlying mucosa and are located most commonly in the supraglottis. Deep biopsies usually are needed for diagnosis, and management may entail endoscopic resection or other treatments.

This paper reviews the literature to identify typical features of laryngeal metastatic lesions of the ten cancers that are among the most common worldwide, ie, skin, renal, breast, colorectal, lung, prostate, thyroid and liver. By summarizing their most prevalent locations in the larynx, type and appearance, the authors hope to aid physicians in their diagnostic process, particularly in cases in which laryngeal involvement is the first presenting sign of a malignancy.