Throat Disorders—Benign Tumors

Also called: Benign cancer, Benign neoplasms, Noncancerous tumors

Tumors are abnormal growths in your body. They can be either benign or malignant. Benign tumors aren’t cancer. Malignant ones are. Benign tumors grow only in one place. They cannot spread or invade other parts of your body. Even so, they can be dangerous if they press on vital organs, such as your brain.

Tumors are made up of extra cells. Normally, cells grow and divide to form new cells as your body needs them. When cells grow old, they die, and new cells take their place. Sometimes, this process goes wrong. New cells form when your body does not need them, and old cells do not die when they should. These extra cells can divide without stopping and may form tumor.

Treatment often involves surgery. Benign tumors usually don’t grow back.

NIH: National Cancer Institute

• Biopsy – polyps (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Cherry angioma (Medical Encyclopedia)

Also called: Pharyngeal disorders

Your throat is a tube that carries food to your esophagus and air to your windpipe and larynx. The technical name for your throat is the pharynx.

Throat problems are common. You’ve probably had a sore throat. The cause is usually a viral infection, but other causes include allergies, infection with strep bacteria or the leaking of stomach acids back up into the esophagus, called GERD.

Other problems that affect the throat include

• Tonsillitis – inflammation of the tonsils
• Cancer
• Croup – inflammation, usually in small children, which causes a barking cough
• Laryngitis – swelling of the voice box, which can cause a hoarse voice or loss of voice

Most throat problems are minor and go away on their own. Treatments, when needed, depend on the problem.

• Blockage of upper airway (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Epiglottitis (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Glossopharyngeal neuralgia (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Herpangina (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Laryngitis (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Laryngoscopy (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Retropharyngeal abscess (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Strep throat (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Throat swab culture (Medical Encyclopedia)