Minimally invasive surgical treatment for early stage laryngeal cancer

  Laryngeal cancer is a common malignant tumor of the head and neck, and its incidence has been on the rise in recent years with the change of environment. Its main causative factors are related to smoking, alcohol consumption, environmental pollution, viral infection, exposure to radiation and lack of trace elements in the body. The treatment methods for laryngeal cancer include surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy and biological therapy. At present, surgery is still the main treatment method for laryngeal cancer.  Minimally invasive treatment for early stage laryngeal cancer (T1 and T2) has become the consensus of ENT surgeons. There are two main types of minimally invasive surgical treatment for early laryngeal cancer: 1. Endoscopic laser therapy Laser surgery for laryngeal cancer has a history of nearly 30 years, and with the development of new lasers and in-depth research on the role of laser and biological tissues, laser surgery has been recognized by the majority of colleagues. As long as the indications are strictly and reasonably controlled, the prognosis can be satisfactory. 2. Endoscopic low-temperature plasma radiofrequency cold knife treatment Endoscopic low-temperature plasma radiofrequency cold knife treatment for early laryngeal cancer is a new technology developed in recent years. Cryogenic plasma RF cold knife is to ionize 0.9% Nacl into plasma state under 100KHz electric field, and then the plasma will vaporize and decompose the tissue by kinetic energy, while the traditional electrosurgery equipment relies on heat energy. The working temperature of low-temperature plasma radiofrequency cold knife is 40-70℃, so the depth of thermal damage is smaller; and it can reduce the concentration of interleukin-1 (IL-1), a pain-causing factor, and increase the concentration of interleukin-8 (IL-8), an analgesic factor, so the patient’s postoperative pain is lighter and the tissue recovers faster.  Currently its application in the treatment of early laryngeal cancer is becoming more and more widespread. Since it is a new technique, there is a lack of follow-up data of large clinical cases at home and abroad; its prognostic effect has yet to be further studied.