Mouth, head and neck cancer

Mouth, head and neck cancer describes different cancers that happen in the organs and tissues of the mouth, head or neck.

This includes oral cancers (lips, tongue and base of the tongue, gums, cheeks, roof of your mouth), the back and side walls of your throat, your nose, ear, salivary glands, eye, larynx and thyroid.

Cancer starts when cells grow in an abnormal way. As they grow, the cancer cells can form a tumour, which can affect how the organ or tissue normally works.

There are many areas of the mouth, head and neck where cancer can occur and includes:

• Oral cavity (mouth) and oropharnygeal cancer
• Laryngeal (voice box) cancer 
• Nasopharyngeal cancer
• Salivary gland cancer. This is rare. Lumps in the salivary gland are common and usually harmless, but get any lumps checked out.
• Nasal and paranasal sinus cancer
• Cancer of the base of tongue and tonsils
• Upper oesphageal (food pipe) cancer
• Cancer of the head and neck lymph nodes - either as primary disease (lymphoma) or as secondary spread of other tumours
• Cancer involving the base of the skull
• Cancer of the ear: This is rare.
• Cancer of the eye: This is very rare.
• Cancer of the thyroid: The thyroid gland is in the front of your neck above your voice box. 

Over 1,000 people are diagnosed with these cancers every year in Ireland.*

The different mouth, head and neck cancers are named after the type of cell where the cancer first started to grow. For example:

These risk factors can increase your chance of developing mouth, head and neck cancer: 

• Smoking: If you smoke, you are more at risk of developing cancer of the mouth, tonsil, throat, larynx or lung. Pipe smokers have an increased risk of lip cancer. If you chew tobacco, you have a higher risk of developing mouth cancers. All types of tobacco use increase your risk of mouth, head and neck cancer. There is no safe use of tobacco. 
• Age: Your risk increases as you get older. While these cancers are more common in people over 50 years of age, they are increasing in people under 50. 
• Gender: These cancers are more common in men than women, but rates in women are rising.
• Alcohol: If you drink a lot of alcohol (more than 10 standard drinks per week), particularly spirits, you are much more likely to develop a head and neck cancer. If you smoke and drink alcohol, the risk is even higher. 
• Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) infection: HPV can increase the risk of cancers in the tongue, tonsil, soft palate and throat.
• Sun exposure: UV rays increase your risk of cancer of the ear, nose and lip.
• Exposure to chemicals and dusts in the workplace: This is linked to throat cancer. 

Having a risk factor doesn’t mean you will get cancer. Sometimes people with no risk factors get cancer. If you’re worried, talk to your GP or to one of our cancer nurses on the Support Line 1800 200 700 or visit a Daffodil Centre.

Medical content updated from our 'Mouth, head and neck cancer' booklet (2023), reviewed by Prof James Paul O’Neill, Professor of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery; Dr Eoin Cleere, Core Surgical Trainee; Shirley Baker, Oncology Clinical Nurse Specialist.