Head and Neck Cancer Care With Your Future in Mind

Advancements in neck and head cancer give patients more options than ever before. That’s why our team is more than your average cancer treatment center in New Jersey—we stay on top of the latest innovations that incorporate sound research and proven practices. Always thinking ahead, this equips or oncologists with the knowledge needed to better diagnose and treat cancer.

Head and neck cancer patients have several treatment options including surgery, chemotherapy, Tomo Therapy, immunotherapy, and clinical trials. Upon meeting with your care team, they can review all of your treatment options and help you choose the path that’s right for you.

Surgery

Surgery can be one of the most effective ways to remove cancer in the head or neck. And cancer surgery in NJ is more accessible—and exceptional—than ever with us.

There are several kinds of surgical options we offer, including the following:

• Laser surgery: This may be used for an early stage tumor, especially if it is in the larynx or voice box.
• Excision: This is the most common type of surgery for head and neck cancer. It removes the tumor and some of the healthy tissue around it.
• Lymph Node Dissection or Neck Dissection: Some of the lymph nodes near the cancer may be removed if the doctor thinks the cancer has spread. This may be done at the same time as the excision.
• Reconstructive or Plastic Surgery: Cancer surgery may remove major tissue, such as the jaw, skin, or tongue. Reconstructive or plastic surgery may be done after this to replace that tissue, and can include more than one surgery.

Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy is the infusion of cancer-killing medicines typically through an IV, and it can be a useful treatment for those with neck and head cancers. It can be used alongside other treatments such as radiation therapy and surgery, and is usually delivered in cycles over a period of time. The treatment may be done as an outpatient visit to a hospital, a chemotherapy clinic, or at home. In some cases, you may stay in the hospital during treatment. Everything is done under the care of your oncologist who, along with patient care navigator, becomes your partner in coordinating care.

TomoTherapy

As the first cancer center in New Jersey to introduce TomoTherapy, we are pleased to be a leader in this remarkable cancer treatment innovation. This advanced and integrated cancer treatment system benefits patients by locating tumors before treatment, delivering precise treatment to the tumors using rotating beamlets and minimizing damage to healthy tissue. It is the first system to integrate and automate radiation therapy from the location of the tumor to the delivery of the beams themselves. As a result, this breakthrough system is giving new options to patients with head and neck cancers, as well as other types of cancer.

Biotherapy / Immunotherapy

Biotherapy, which is also known as immunotherapy, is one of the most exciting fields in cancer research. This treatment uses the body's immune system to fight cancer using immune system cells, antibodies and organs. This can protect and defend the body against bacteria or viruses. Health care providers and researchers have found that the immune system might also be able to both determine the difference between healthy cells and cancer cells in the body, and may have the potential to eliminate cancer cells.

In general, immunotherapy is designed to boost the immune system, either directly or indirectly, by doing any of the following:

• Stopping, controlling or suppressing the processes that allow cancers to grow
• Making cancer cells more recognizable by the immune system, and therefore more capable of being destroyed by the immune system
• Enhancing the killing power of immune system cells
• Changing the way cancer cells grow, so that they act more like healthy cells
• Stopping the process that changes a normal cell into a cancerous cell
• Enhancing the body's ability to repair or replace normal cells damaged or destroyed by other forms of cancer treatment, such as chemotherapy or radiation
• Preventing cancer cells from spreading to other parts of the body

Immunotherapy can be used alone to treat head and neck cancer, or in combination with other treatments such as surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy.

To contact one of New Jersey’s best head and neck cancer specialists call
844-CANCERNJ or 844-226-2376.