Five larynx cancer survivors get their voices back

AHMEDABAD: On Saturday, five survivors of cancer of the larynx who had lost their voice because of the disease, were able to speak again. A successful larynx prosthesis surgery performed at a Sola-based cancer centre had restored their voices and that too completely free of cost.

Hemlata Patel, a teacher at a primary school in Aravalli, was among the beneficiaries of the free treatment. She had developed cancer of the larynx in 2014. She was rendered jobless when the cancer advanced and finally took away her voice. Patel was unlucky in getting laryngeal cancer as the disease generally strikes men.

Similarly, Mohan Rajput, a habitual smoker, had also developed cancer of the larynx. After undergoing surgery for the cancer, Rajput communicated through an electronic device that sounded like a robot. His conversations ended whenever the batteries ran out.

Patel and Rajput were among the patients who got their voice back following the larynx prosthesis surgery.

Three other patients from Gujarat were also operated upon live by Dr D A Chaukar of Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai, and Dr Umanath Nayak of Apollo Hospital, Hyderabad, at the Oncosurgery Master Course-2015 workshop organized by Dr Kaustubh Patel of HCG Cancer Centre. Dr Patel is a surgeon specialising in cancers of the head and neck.

The recovering patients will be able to speak normally because of a voice prosthesis fitted into an opening between the windpipe and food pipe.

Panel discussions and open house were also held to allow those attending the workshop to take part more productively. Around 50 cancer and ENT surgeons were trained at the workshop. “Carcinoma of the larynx is the fifth most prevalent cancer in males in the region of Ahmedabad, with an incidence of 3.7%,” said Dr Patel.