A pharyngectomy is surgery for certain throat cancers. You may have minimally invasive surgery to remove small tumors or open surgery to remove part or all of your throat. This surgery can eliminate the chance that cancer will spread. But removing part or all of your throat often affects your speech and ability to swallow.
Advertisement
Cleveland Clinic is a non-profit academic medical center. Advertising on our site helps support our mission. We do not endorse non-Cleveland Clinic products or services. Policy
A pharyngectomy is surgery to remove cancerous tumors from your throat. You may have minimally invasive surgery to remove small tumors. Or the surgery may involve removing all or part of your throat.
Advertisement
Cleveland Clinic is a non-profit academic medical center. Advertising on our site helps support our mission. We do not endorse non-Cleveland Clinic products or services. Policy
This procedure is most often used to treat hypopharyngeal cancer (cancer at the back of your throat) and oropharyngeal cancer (cancer in the middle of your throat). But you may have a pharyngectomy if you have cancer in your voice box. In that case, a surgeon may remove your voice box and part of your throat.
A pharyngectomy (pronounced “far-in-JEK-tuh-mee”) can cure throat cancer that hasn’t spread outside your throat. But removing part or all of your throat can change how you breathe, speak or swallow. Many people have additional surgery to rebuild their throats.
The three types are:
The first step may be to understand how your procedure will affect you. Your healthcare team will explain the specific procedure you’ll be having, from the actual surgery to what goes into recovery. Your team will include a surgeon and an oncologist. You’ll also meet with a speech-language pathologist and a dietitian.
Advertisement
Your team will let you know if you’ll need a tracheostomy to insert a breathing tube and/or enteral nutrition after surgery. They’ll discuss reconstructive surgery to rebuild your throat or the part of your throat that surgery affects.
They’ll explain if the surgery may cause long-term changes. For example, you may have trouble swallowing after TORS or a partial pharyngectomy. Surgery to remove your whole throat could permanently change how you take in air and your ability to speak.
That might feel like a lot of information to process. You may have questions or concerns. Don’t hesitate to share what’s on your mind or ask questions. Understanding what to expect can help you feel confident about the procedure and your treatment decisions.
Other steps you should take to prepare for surgery include:
You may have TORS for small tumors in your throat or open surgery to remove part or all of your throat.
Open surgery involves large cuts (incisions) in your throat. You’ll receive general anesthesia so you’re asleep during surgery. Your surgeon may start surgery by making a hole in your throat to hold a breathing tube. Next, they’ll:
In general, open surgery can take between five and 12 hours to complete. You may need a breathing tube for a while after surgery. In that case, your surgeon will remove it before you leave the hospital. But some people have permanent tracheostomies.
TORS stands for transoral robotic surgery. Your surgeon will control a port that contains a small camera and robotic instruments. They’ll insert the port into your mouth and remove tumors by controlling the robotic tools. Like open surgery, you’ll have general anesthesia.
This procedure may cure throat cancer that hasn’t spread. Removing the cancer reduces the risk that it will spread to another part of your body. Like most major open surgeries, there are risks involved. Those include:
An open surgery may cause a pharyngocutaneous fistula. This is an abnormal connection between your throat and the skin of your neck. The connection lets saliva flow onto your skin when you swallow.
Advertisement
Like open surgery, TORS may cure throat cancer. And like open surgery, there are potential risks. Those include:
You may be in the hospital for up to 10 days after open surgery, starting with one to two days in the intensive care unit. With TORS, you’ll stay in the hospital for two or three days after surgery.
As you recover from open surgery or TORS, you may have:
Later, you may have radiation therapy. This treatment kills any cancer cells left after surgery.
It can take up to three months to fully recover from a total pharyngectomy. You’ll have swallowing therapy so you’ll eventually be able to swallow liquid and food. It takes about two weeks to recover from TORS.
Your voice may sound different after an open partial or total pharyngectomy. For example, it may sound strained or breathy. Some people may not be able to speak after surgery.
Losing your voice forever can be a frustrating and frightening experience. Your speech-language pathologist understands how this change can affect you. They’ll share more about the different ways to communicate if surgery affects your speech. Examples include:
Advertisement
You may want to try different techniques. Your speech-language pathologist will help you figure out what’s best for you.
Contact your surgeon if you bleed more than you expect or have infection symptoms like:
A pharyngectomy may be a lifesaving treatment for throat cancer. But surgery to remove part or all of your throat may affect the way you breathe, swallow or speak. Those changes can affect your daily routine and quality of life.
Advertisement
Your healthcare team knows these changes can be challenging. They’ll take the time to explain how surgery may affect you, and they’ll recommend treatments and services that will help you manage any challenges.
Sign up for our Health Essentials emails for expert guidance on nutrition, fitness, sleep, skin care and more.
Learn more about the Health Library and our editorial process.
Cleveland Clinic’s health articles are based on evidence-backed information and review by medical professionals to ensure accuracy, reliability and up-to-date clinical standards.
Cleveland Clinic’s health articles are based on evidence-backed information and review by medical professionals to ensure accuracy, reliability and up-to-date clinical standards.
If you hear that you might have throat cancer, you’ll want expert care. Cleveland Clinic’s providers can create a throat cancer treatment plan to match your needs.
