Brian Thomas with Dr. Joseph Shaughnessy -- 4/8/25

Eight thirty seven come up in a thirty eight here fifty five KRCD talk station Brian Thomas with one of the good doctors from OHC my cancer doctors. Yes, I'm getting my CT scan today and keep my fingers crossed because I've got low spectrum lymphoma. But today we're gonna be talking about head and net cancer. Why because it's Head and net Cancer Month in studio to talk about that,

Thank you so much for having me.

Uh.

And you've got a well let's see here proof positive in my hands. Uh radiation on colleges with interest including breast cancer, head and net cancer, lung cancer, prostate cancer, gastro intestinal cancer, and skin cancer. Broad field of of work you do there, doctor.

Yeah, that's kind of the nature of what I do out in the community. You know, see a broad spectrum of cases, and yeah, that's just kind of the nature of our day to day operation.

All right.

Let us initially establish what exactly is head and neck cancer. What comprises head and neck cancer.

It's basically any cancer that starts above the clavicles. So any cancer that arises in the head and neck region outside of the brain, in the eye, those are normally not included in this group of cancers. So that could be a tonsil cancer, the back of the throat they call it, the base of tongue, anywhere in the mouth region or the gums, the voice box otherwise known as the larynx. It can include the thyroid, and then even

I just had to dwell us briefly, skin cancer in the head and neck region that will be exterior on your neck. That would still fall into your area of practice or head and neck cancer.

Yeah, exactly, Okay, And then you know it can start in the head and neck area on the external scan, and then it could involve the lymph nodes underneath.

Or fair enough, fair enough because be pasty Northern European descentate white guy that's had multiple severe burns when he was a child. I have a regular standing visit with a dermatologist annually because dad had a lot of removals.

Over the years. He spent a lot of time outside. So just a little fun advice.

If you want to get at an appointment with a dermatologist, then you might fuck you find yourself fall into that category. Not to speak out of turn, doctor scheduled appointment now, because it's going to be a long time before you can get in with the dermatologist.

Yeah.

Often, I know, I know, it's crazy, it's just crazy. Anyway.

Is any one of those various cancers you talked about within the head and neck cancer room more predominant than others, like a softie deal cancer or the larynx.

Or I would say, so there's this category called the oropharynx, that's the tonsils and the back of the tongue. That is probably the most common side of origin, and then second behind that is probably the voice box. Dirog cancer is also a very common cancer, but that's kind of in its own group. And not kind of really often the focus when they're talking about having net cancer, but it is grouped into that otory as well.

Do these cancers that you went down thyroid do they carry with themselves different like risk factors like I've read and I'm state in the obvious, I think most people are paying attention. Smoking, of course, and alcohol consumption can also lead to throat cancers.

Yeah.

Absolutely, you hit the nail on the head there. Alcohol and various forms of tobacco exposure probably in some way, shape or form, account for seventy to seventy five percent of these cancers. So yeah, those are a both very well known risk factors and both modifiable risk factors. And it's also in a note you know, if you partaken those things, cutting back or abstinence altogether can still markedly reduce your risk of cancer in the long term. So

You It's never too late to quit exactly right. It's never too late to convert salvation. Maybe around the corner you maybe it'll avoid this type of thing. Well, how about infections.

Yeah, so that's the other big kind of driver of these cancers. HPV infection. That's short for human papaloma virus. It's a family of viruses. They're very common. They cause all sorts of things from like run of the mill warts, but there are a few more serious types such as HPV sixteen.

Oh and you know these these they like COVID nineteen except HPV form no.

But yeah, you know, when they discover these viruses, they just assign a number to them, kind of in order of when they discover them. But it most people, it's still a very common virus.

Most everybody's got it.

Yeah, most people have been exposed in some way, shape or form, and then your body just gets rid of it and it's not an issue and then it's just gone. But a very small percentage of people don't clear it, and it kind of festers and it can cause kind of chronic inflammation and eventually cause a regular cell division and then it causes the cancer.

So it acts in the same way HPV acts on cervical cancer if you have HPV or servial cancer is quite often, if not predominantly, caused by an HPV infection exactly.

That's it's the exact same mechanism. It's the same family, it's the same virus as even the same high risk HPV forms that cause cervical cancer can cause head in neck cancers.

Okay, And not to get too graphic or specific, but the mechanism by which one might contract HV and end up with throat cancer sort of acts in the same way as you get it when you end up contracting cervical cancer.

Yeah, I mean, okay, direct contact and mouth and yeah right, okay, So it's a sexually transmitted virus.

It's a sexually transmitted virus, Okay, regardless where it lands up. That's the that's the point of it, all right, Oh, of established that clear it up, that little bit of math. Now, this other one, this HPV sixteen, I've never heard of that. Now I've heard of you know, home h people. There's there's a whole multitude of these HPV viruses out there, and some of them can, like you said, can cause warts like genital warts or I guess same thing that happens in your throat.

Yeah, or even just the HPV viruses can cause skin worts too. I mean there's so it's a whole spectrum of these viruses.

Okay, and since most people have it, I mean, if you're sexually active at all, I guess the statistics are that you probably have at least or at least had HPV infection.

Yeah, I mean I think I've seen that if you're sexually active at all, there's over fifty percent chance that you've had some sort of exposure to one of these types.

All right, how about oral, fair and genial cancers that's caused by HPV as well, because because you say, the notes suggest that they're on the rise.

Yeah, so that is that group of cancers that like the tonsil in the back of the tongue, those are grouped under the that's a part of your body called the oropharynx. And yeah, smoking and alcohol related cancers have been diminishing over time. People are engaging in more generally responsible behavior and moderation. But these HPV related cancers have been increasing over time because these viruses are just so widespread now and exposure is so common. And yeah, the oropharynx.

All right, well it's pauses eight forty five.

We'll continue with doctor Joseph Shaughnessy from OHC again online in oh hair dot com eight at eight sixty eight hundred. We're gonna get some other risk factors, typical symptoms. Uh, we're gonna talk about screening a little bit and hopefully can they be cured? He'll answer that question as well. Don't go way.

A forty eight Pigbouck CARECB talk station.

OHHC my cancer doctors, ohcare dot coms where you find them on line eighty eight six ft eight hundred in studio doctor Joseph Shaughnessy, who's a head of net cancer specialists among others. He's a whole litany of cancer specialist. But we're talking about head and net cancer and when we're talking about HPV, I asked about the vaccine and it was a definite Yes, men and women can get the HPV vaccine in order to try and stave off this.

Right.

Yes, I mean the HPV vaccine is essentially a cancer prevention vaccine. It is targeted against the high risk forms of HPV, not just sixteen. They include a bunch of different variations of it sixteen, eighteen, thirty one, thirty three, and all these different forms that have been shown to be high risk. It can prevent infection and in turn can lower your risk of these HPV related cancers significantly.

All right, now, I'm going on the side of I don't care where you are with RFK Junior, I would recommend getting that one. All right, What are the other risk factors which which might cause head and neck cancers?

Generally we've touched on on really the main ones. Yeah, I mean, you know, there are other certain environmental exposures, certain kind of chemicals and substances, certain industrial exposures out there. I mean, that's a very small percentage of cancers related to that, but there can be you know, just oral hygiene. If your mouth is in bad shape and you don't take good care of it and you just have chronic inflammation in there from bad teeth, et cetera. You know, that can be a risk factor.

That should not happen to anybody in my listening audience. You got doctors Peck and Frew. They're great doctors. They're dennis to take care of you. Any genetic risk very little.

Okay, there's not any short answer, is now?

Okay?

Cutting to the chase. What do people need to be looking for in terms of the typical symptoms, because you know, you get people freaked out of it, like, oh my god, it is what happening now? Is this related to throat cancer or something? What are the symptoms?

Yeah, and that's tricky. There's a whole wide spectrum of possible symptoms. I mean, what you're really looking out for is something that is new and different for you and it's not going away. I mean this can include like a sore throat that's hanging around. Most sore throats are not cancer related, but if you have a sore throat that's persisting despite you giving it some time and some treatment,

Well, that's why next you can go to your primary care physician sort of add an outset and talk to that. I don't need to call oh if I have a sinus infection that doesn't clear up with antibiotics immediately.

Absolutely, your primary care team is your first line that you know. They're well versed in managing these issues, and they're very well versed and knowing when to escalate beyond just conventional stuff like antibiotics or given it a little extra time.

All right, So we've talked at we were talked at length about the lifestyles and screening. So what about the treatability. How treatable are these is it?

Can they metastasize?

I mean, I guess early detection is always usually really the key to getting in front of it and being we have to have a greater likelihood of success. But what's going on in the area of treatments and do people still have hope if they get diagnosed.

Yeah, So these cancers are very often absolutely curable, and as you touched on, early detection and early intervention can really tilt the scales in your favor. You know, if it has spread outside the head and neck region, at that point in time, it's more about controlling the disease rather than cure. But the first thing we're thinking when we look at any of these cancer cases is hey, how can.

We get to cure here?

And there's a variety of tools that we have to get to that.

Clinical trials going on for any of these types of cancers.

Absolutely, you know, we're always trying to get better, find new things, refine our treatment algorithms. I mean, one of the big pushes in some of these clinical trials is actually sometimes de intensification of treatment. Sometimes these treatments when you're doing surgery or chemote therapy can be quite intense, and we want to find that sweet spot where we're we're maintaining high cure rates but giving people as little side effects as possible.

Well, piling on the incentives for lifestyle changes. While you may not be able to avoid getting an HPV infection in these worlds, in this world that we currently live, in I see that patients with HPV induced or oral faaryngeal cancer have a very high survival rate over five years.

Yeah, so you know, we do a great job with these HPV related cancers. I mean a lot of scary talk about how you know these viruses are out there. People are getting these cancers. Often it can be you know, younger patients getting these cancers. But the good news is is that the cure rates, Yeah, can be around eighty five ninety percent, even if it's already spread to the lymph nodes in the neck regions, still very high cur rate.

Well, that is very positive information. But again piling on the lifestyle changes, tell my listeners about the population that have some smoking slash drinking related.

Yeah, I mean unfortunate only they just don't do as well. Those are more stubborn, tricky cancers that can be treatment resistant. And also you know the effects of smoking and drinking for decades can make your body less able to tolerate treatment well. And so the combination of all those factors can I mean those cancers have a cure rate. I mean often it can be under fifty percent.

Stuff.

You need to know, folks, And if you need a second opinion, you've already been diagnosed. Get in touch with OHC at eight eight eight six hundred. Of course, if your doctor's suggests you need to be referred to a cancer physician. I'm glad that I had a dear friend of mine refer me to OHC. I've been at their great care for years now and I strongly recommend them as well as just from an independent person who's been through that experience. Ohcare dot com is where you can

Thanks so much for having me.

My pleasure is all mine. Twenty five folks. Peter Brownson was in studio full hour Man. It's the twenty fourth anniversary of the Cincinnati Riots, and we did a deep dive into that The reality is certainly different than what was presented in the newspaper. That's be sure you can get a copy of his book Behind the Lines, The