Soft Palate Cancer

Overview

Your soft palate is the back part of the roof of your mouth. Soft palate cancer is one of several kinds of oropharyngeal cancer. It happens when squamous cell carcinoma cells multiply and create cancerous tumors. Soft palate cancer is often found before it can spread, making it easier to treat with surgery to remove tumors.

Is soft palate cancer common?

No, it’s not. Soft palate cancer is a type of oropharyngeal cancer. About 53,000 people in the U.S. are diagnosed with oropharyngeal cancer each year. Soft palate cancer accounts for about 5% to 12% of all oropharyngeal cancer. Given that data, soft palate cancer affects 2,000 to 6,000 people. For comparison, lung cancer affects more than 236,000 people annually.

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Symptoms

When to see a doctor

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Complications

Blood clots are a dangerous complication of atrial fibrillation (AFib). Blood clots can lead to stroke.

The risk of stroke from AFib increases as you grow older. Other health conditions also may increase the risk of a stroke due to AFib. These conditions include:

High blood pressure.
Diabetes.
Heart failure.
Some types of heart valve disease.

Blood thinners are commonly prescribed to prevent blood clots and strokes in people with atrial fibrillation.

Prevention

Healthy lifestyle choices can reduce the risk of heart disease and may prevent atrial fibrillation (AFib). Here are some basic heart-healthy tips:

Control high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes.
Don't smoke or use tobacco.
Eat a diet that's low in salt and saturated fat.
Exercise at least 30 minutes a day on most days of the week unless your health care team says not to.
Get good sleep. Adults should aim for 7 to 9 hours daily.
Maintain a healthy weight.
Reduce and manage stress.

By Freedmans Health Clinic Staff

Living with atrial fibrillation?

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