What to do if nasopharyngeal carcinoma metastasizes to the brain and gastrointestinal tract? Can it be treated?

In the late stage of cancer, cancer cell metastasis is a common symptom, especially when it metastasizes to important parts of the human body, which will accelerate the patient's death. Next, the author will introduce to you, what should be done if nasopharyngeal cancer metastasizes to the brain and gastrointestinal tract? Can it be treated?

If nasopharyngeal carcinoma is not treated in time, the chance of brain metastasis is quite high. The following symptoms may occur: numbness of facial skin, clinical examination shows decreased or absent pain and touch sensation. In the late stage of nasopharyngeal carcinoma, due to the tumor destroying the skull base or spreading inside the skull and affecting the cranial nerves, persistent migraines may occur in a fixed location.

Because the tumor invades the abducens nerve, it often causes double vision when looking outward. When the trochlear nerve is invaded, it often causes the patient to squint inward and diplopia. When nasopharyngeal carcinoma directly invades or lymph nodes metastasize to the posterior area of ​​the styloid process or the hypoglossal nerve canal, the hypoglossal nerve is invaded, causing the tongue to be extended to the affected side and accompanied by atrophy of the tongue muscles on the affected side.

In the late stage, nasopharyngeal carcinoma often metastasizes to the liver, lungs, bones, followed by the kidneys, adrenal glands, and pancreas. When these organs are uncomfortable, the possibility of cancer metastasis needs to be considered.

It is generally believed that distant metastasis of nasopharyngeal carcinoma is caused by hematogenous metastasis, so systemic chemotherapy is mostly used as the main treatment for nasopharyngeal carcinoma metastasis. However, since these patients are often in poor general condition and their liver and kidney functions cannot tolerate systemic chemotherapy, local radiotherapy combined with Chinese medicine treatment is more important. It is certain that the control rate of local radiotherapy is significantly improved when liver and kidney functions are taken into consideration.

Radiotherapy technology has made great strides in development, from the previous whole-brain radiotherapy to the current stereotactic radiotherapy, the treatment method has changed from extensive to individual, from the whole brain to the tumor lesion, and this treatment method is more easily accepted by patients. Stereotactic radiotherapy equipment such as the Gamma Knife CyberKnife also serves more nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients, reducing the side effects and damage caused by excessive radiotherapy doses.

Therefore, we know that if nasopharyngeal cancer patients develop brain and gastrointestinal metastases, it means that they are already in the late stage of cancer, and persisting in treatment will help prolong their lives.