TUMORS OF THE PHARYNX.
Varieties of neoplasms. Malignant invade adjacent and distant parts. Symptoms: sore throat; stertor; dyspnœea; dysphagia. In cattle, lymphadenoma, tubercle, actinomycosis. Cause cough, ptyalism, discharge, fœtor, dysphagia. Dogs and pigs vomit. Treatment: medical; surgical.
Tumors of the pharynx are not common in the horse yet they occasionally appear as either primary or secondary neoplasms. They are of various kinds, as, epithelioma (Labat, Mathis), carcinoma (Casper, Dupuy, Mathis), sarcoma (Siedamgrotzky, Johne), lipoma (Fricker), cystoma (Degive) and melicerous (Lesbre). The malignant forms tend to invade the surrounding tissues and spread widely into the nose, palate, tongue, pharyngeal glands, and, secondarily, into the small intestines. The simple tumors like the lipomata and fibromata tend to detach themselves and hang by a pedicle (see pharyngeal polypi). The same is true of the melicerous cyst which originating in an obstructed mucous or salivary duct projects as a mass as large as a hen’s or pigeon’s egg into the fauces or pharynx.
Symptoms. There are symptoms of intense sore throat with stertor continuous or intermittent, increasing to dyspnœa at intervals or on exertion. In case of pediculated tumors these attacks correspond to the displacement of the tumor into the glottis. Deglutition is difficult or impossible, liquids or even solids returning through the nose, mixed with mucus and at times tinged with blood. Nasal discharge and ptyalism are present.
In cattle pharyngeal tumors may be of the same nature as mentioned for the horse, but they are far more frequently lymphadenoma, and above all tubercle or actinomycosis. Zimmer found that of seventy-three such tumors fifty-four were actinomycosis.
The symptoms are wheezing breathing, cough, nasal discharge, ptyalism, bleeding from the nose, fœtid breath, difficult deglutition attended by cough and rejection of the ingesta through the nose, and the presence of a solid body in or on the pharynx which may be manipulated from without or within and tends to increase in size.
In dogs there are the same general symptoms with vomiting. The vomited material is usually remasticated and swallowed. The swelling in the pharynx can be felt from without, or seen through the open mouth. The tonsils are usually enlarged. Pressure on the pharynx or gullet produces instant regurgitation.
Treatment consists in the removal of the tumor when possible. Malignant growths and multiple tumors are not favorable for treatment. Actinomycosis can be treated throughout by iodides, or these may supplement the surgical measures. In the short-faced animals an ecraseur, or a wire-snare passed through a tube may be employed. (See pharyngeal polypi).