Jaw cancer treatment in Germany
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Upper or lower jaw cancer is usually a squamous cell carcinoma that develops from the lining of the mouth or maxillary sinus. German hospitals successfully treat this disease with surgery, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy. Surgical tumor removal is followed by a reconstructive stage in order to restore damaged tissue. You are welcome to use the Booking Health service to find out prices and make an appointment for your treatment at one of the German hospitals.
Content
- What is jaw cancer?
- Surgery for upper and lower jaw cancer
- Radiation therapy and chemotherapy for jaw cancer
- Why is it worth undergoing jaw cancer treatment in Germany?
If jaw cancer is suspected, a comprehensive examination is carried out, including CT/MRI and biopsy to clarify the histological type of the tumor. Based on the results, doctors plan treatment and subsequent rehabilitation.
The main treatment method for jaw cancer is surgical removal of the tumor in combination with chemotherapy and radiation. In some cases, the medical opportunities in Germany make it possible to replace surgery with targeted radiotherapy.
The duration of jaw cancer treatment varies from a few weeks (surgery and rehabilitation) to several months (if the treatment regimen is supplemented with chemotherapy, reconstructive surgery).
The average cost of jaw cancer surgery in Germany is €25,200. Full information on clinics and treatment prices can be found on the Booking Health website.
Booking Health professionals help you to choose a clinic and a doctor, provide information about suitable types of treatment, and make an appointment for urgent treatment. They will also help you to get a visa and come to the clinic, take care of an interpreter and all organizational aspects.
What is jaw cancer?
A person has two jaws: upper and lower. Both jaws can be affected by the tumor process. Typically, squamous cell carcinoma develops in the upper or lower jaw. Other histological types account for no more than 10% of all cases of cancer.
The cancer is an epithelial tumor, so it does not grow from the bone itself but from the mucous membrane in the jaw area. In rare cases, a tumor may develop from bone tissue, but this condition is not considered cancer. It is called sarcoma.
Upper jaw cancer is usually a tumor that begins its growth in the maxillary sinus. This is a cavity inside the bone that communicates with the nasal cavity. This tumor does not cause any symptoms for a very long time because, even with significant filling of the sinus, its function is not impaired. When communication with the nasal cavity is blocked, the first symptoms appear, but they resemble manifestations of chronic sinusitis, which in many situations becomes the cause of an erroneous diagnosis.
From the maxillary sinus, the tumor may spread towards the nasal cavity, mouth, orbit, or brain, depending on the directions of tumor growth. If there is some communication with the nasal cavity and the neoplasm can penetrate into it through the natural anastomosis, cancer spread to other anatomical areas occurs only when the bone wall of the maxillary sinus is destroyed.
Lower jaw cancer is a malignancy of the oral cavity. Prognostically, this is a more favorable disease compared to upper jaw cancer. If detected in its early stages in Germany, the disease can be cured with a probability of up to 95%. But in two out of three cases, lower jaw cancer is detected at stage III or IV. Even in such situations, doctors in Germany manage to achieve good survival rates. However, the surgeries become more complex and traumatic, and after surgery, patients require radiation therapy and chemotherapy.
Surgery for upper and lower jaw cancer
Oral and maxillofacial surgery is a complex area of medicine. However, doctors in Germany successfully perform surgeries for jaw cancer, not only completely removing the malignant tumor and lymph nodes but also restoring damaged tissue.
The extent of surgery depends on the stage at which the tumor is detected, where it has spread, whether there are metastases in the lymph nodes, how high the risk of their occurrence is, and if the lymph nodes are not yet enlarged at the time of diagnosis.
Here are the possible stages of surgery:
- Surgical removal of lymph nodes: submental, submandibular, and cervical lymph nodes of several levels – this is usually the first stage of the surgery
- Resection of the upper or lower jaw together with the tumor
- Resection of other organs and tissues to which the neoplasm has spread: these can be soft tissues of the face, floor of the mouth, tongue, ethmoid labyrinth, frontal sinus, orbit, periorbital tissues, eyeball, or dura mater
Whenever possible, the tumor is removed using the en bloc technique. The doctor captures an area of healthy tissue to achieve clean resection margins. If the border of the removed tissue is free of cancer cells, the chances of curing jaw cancer are much higher.
For doctors in Germany, it is important not only to cure jaw cancer but also to ensure a high quality of life for the patient and their professional and social rehabilitation. Therefore, maxillofacial surgeons in Germany reconstruct damaged tissues. Sometimes all surgical goals can be achieved with one intervention, while in other cases, delayed reconstruction may be required.
The optimal option for tissue replacement is autotransplantation. Doctors at German hospitals transplant bone and musculocutaneous flaps from other parts of the patient's body. Artificial materials (implants) can also be used. This is technically simpler and faster, and with this approach, additional trauma to the donor site can be avoided. But the results may be worse because implants are more often used in patients with a high risk of relapse, the elderly, and patients with a low life expectancy due to severe diseases of the internal organs.
Radiation therapy and chemotherapy for jaw cancer
Doctors in Germany use the latest radiation therapy techniques, which are very accurate and safe. This is especially important for jaw cancer because the radiation zones are in the head and neck areas. Not only the tumor or postoperative scar is irradiated, but also the lymphatic collector, including the lymph nodes in the neck. These areas contain many important organs and major nerves and blood vessels in close proximity, and doctors therefore must avoid radiation damage by targeting radiation very precisely and reducing the dose to critical areas.
Radiation therapy can be used in the following cases:
- After surgery, in order to reduce the risk of relapse
- As the main method for inoperable patients
- For controlling distant metastases in end-stage cancer
Proton therapy can be used as one of the radiation options. Its price is higher, but the risk of complications is lower. There are six Proton Therapy Centers in Germany. Most foreign patients are treated for head and neck tumors in the two largest centers in Heidelberg and Essen. Prices can be checked on the Booking Health website.
In most hospitals, radiation therapy is combined with chemotherapy. This treatment method is called chemoradiotherapy. Chemotherapy can also be used as a stand-alone method of adjuvant treatment. It reduces the risk of relapse by 20-60%.
Why is it worth undergoing jaw cancer treatment in Germany?
If you have jaw cancer, you can undergo your treatment in Germany. German hospitals have state-of-the-art equipment. Doctors in the Departments of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at hospitals in Germany successfully perform even the most complex operations.
There are a few reasons for you to undergo your cancer treatment in Germany. These are as follows:
- Top-class oral and maxillofacial surgery
- Complete tumor removal with a good chance of full recovery
- Neck dissection can be performed using endoscopic techniques to improve aesthetic results
- High-quality reconstructive surgery with the restoration of a normal appearance and functions of chewing, swallowing, and speech
- Doctors in Germany use the latest, more accurate, and safer options for radiation therapy
- Effective drug treatment regimens are used, which may include not only cytostatic chemotherapy but also targeted therapy and immunotherapy
You can find out more about the cost of treatment in Germany on the Booking Health website. The website presents the prices of procedures and surgeries at different German hospitals. You can compare the cost of treatment in Germany and choose the option with the best price.
When you make an appointment for your treatment in Germany through the Booking Health service, you will save money. Prices for medical services at German hospitals are lower due to the absence of additional fees for foreign patients. The Booking Health specialists will help you choose the most suitable hospital and organize your treatment in Germany.
Authors:
The article was edited by medical experts, board certified doctors Dr. Nadezhda Ivanisova and Dr. Vadim Zhiliuk. For the treatment of the conditions referred to in the article, you must consult a doctor; the information in the article is not intended for self-medication!
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