# Head and neck subsites (oral cavity, oropharynx, larynx)

Source: https://onco.cc/terms/head-neck-subsites/  
OnCo record `head-neck-subsites` (Term). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

Head and neck cancer is really several cancers named by exact location: mouth (oral cavity), back of the throat (oropharynx, where HPV cancers arise), voice box (larynx), lower throat (hypopharynx) and behind the nose (nasopharynx). Each behaves and is treated differently.

## Summary

Oral cavity cancers are treated surgically first. Oropharyngeal cancers, now mostly HPV-driven, respond so well to chemoradiation that de-escalation trials are under way; laryngeal cancer is often treated with radiotherapy to preserve the voice, with laryngectomy for salvage; nasopharyngeal carcinoma, EBV-driven and concentrated in southern China, gets IMRT plus platinum and is monitored by plasma EBV DNA. Subsite determines staging (AJCC 8 gives HPV-positive oropharynx its own system), surgical access and functional consequences for speech and swallowing.

## Fields

- Kind: Term
- Last checked: 2026-09-09
- Also known as: oral cavity; oropharynx; oropharyngeal; hypopharynx; nasopharynx; nasopharyngeal; larynx; laryngeal; larynx preservation; salivary gland; salivary glands

## Sources

- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Head_and_neck_cancer
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Head_and_neck_cancer

## Connected records

- terms: [Chemoradiation (chemoradiotherapy, CRT)](https://onco.cc/terms/chemoradiation/), [Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) in cancer](https://onco.cc/terms/ebv-term/), [HPV status (HPV-positive / HPV-negative)](https://onco.cc/terms/hpv-status/), [Plasma EBV DNA](https://onco.cc/terms/plasma-ebv-dna/)
- cancers: [Esthesioneuroblastoma (olfactory neuroblastoma)](https://onco.cc/cancers/esthesioneuroblastoma/), [Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/head-and-neck/), [Locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (stage III to IVA)](https://onco.cc/cancers/locoregionally-advanced-nasopharyngeal-carcinoma/), [Nasal cavity and paranasal sinus cancers (including esthesioneuroblastoma)](https://onco.cc/cancers/sinonasal/), [Sinonasal undifferentiated carcinoma (SNUC) and SWI/SNF-deficient sinonasal carcinoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/sinonasal-undifferentiated-carcinoma/)
- fronts: [Radiation Therapy](https://onco.cc/fronts/radiation/), [Surgery & Interventional](https://onco.cc/fronts/surgery/)

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JSON: https://onco.cc/api/v1/entities/head-neck-subsites.json