Find out who gets head and neck cancers and what causes these cancers.
Learn more about:
- Who gets head and neck cancers?
- What causes head and neck cancers?
- What is human papillomavirus (HPV)?
Who gets head and neck cancers?
Almost 6000 people in Australia are diagnosed with a head and neck cancer each year (excluding skin cancers). This includes about 2100 people with cancer in the mouth or tongue; 1400 with pharyngeal cancer; 570 with laryngeal cancer; 230 with nasal or paranasal sinus cancer; and 360 with salivary gland cancer.
Head and neck cancers are more common after the age of 40. Men are about 3 times more likely than women to develop a head and neck cancer, mainly due to higher smoking and drinking rates (see below). However, the rate of oral cancer in females who don’t smoke tobacco is increasing. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are also at increased risk of developing head and neck cancers.
For an overview of what you can expect – and what is recommended – at every stage of your cancer care, visit Head and neck cancer: Your guide to best cancer care.
What causes head and neck cancers?
The main factors that increase the risk of developing the most common head and neck cancers are:
- smoking tobacco (including cigarettes, cigars and pipes)
- drinking alcohol
- having had human papillomavirus (HPV).
If you drink and smoke, your risk is much greater than if you only drink or only smoke.
Other risk factors account for a smaller proportion of head and neck cancers. These risk factors include:
- having persistent sores or red or white patches in the mouth
- chewing tobacco, snuff, betel nut, areca nut, paan or gutka
- breathing in asbestos fibres, wood dust or certain chemicals
- poor dental health
- having a weakened immune system
- having had radiation therapy to the head or neck area in the past
- having too much sun exposure (for lip cancer and skin cancer)
- having a parent, child or sibling with head and neck cancer (possibly because you have similar lifestyle factors)
- inheriting a condition linked to head and neck cancer (e.g. Fanconi anaemia, Li-Fraumeni syndrome)
- having had Epstein-Barr Virus (also called glandular fever).
Talk to your doctor if you are worried about any risk factors.
Human papillomavirus (HPV) and cancer risk
HPV is a group of viruses that affect the surface or lining of parts of the body, including the throat, cervix and skin. It is the most common sexually transmitted infection, and may also be transferred in other ways. About 4 out of 5 people are exposed to HPV in their lifetime and most won’t show symptoms or know they’ve had it.
There are many types of HPV, but only some subtypes are linked to oropharyngeal cancer, which starts in the tonsils and tongue base. This HPV may be spread through oral sex and kissing.
Most HPV infections are cleared by our immune system. In some people, the virus can lie dormant for years and then cause cancer. We still do not understand why this happens. HPV vaccination can protect you against HPV infection. Talk to your doctor about vaccination or if you are worried about HPV.
→ READ MORE: Symptoms of head and neck cancers
Key resource
Download a PDF booklet on this topic.
More resources
A/Prof Martin Batstone, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon and Director of the Maxillofacial Unit, Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital, QLD; Polly Baldwin, 13 11 20 Consultant, Cancer Council SA; Martin Boyle, Consumer; Dr Teresa Brown, Assistant Director Dietetics, Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital, Honorary Associate Professor, University of Queensland, QLD; Dr Hayley Dixon, Head, Clinical Support Dentistry Department, WSLHD Oral Health Services, Public Health Dentistry Specialist, NSW; Head and Neck Cancer Care Nursing Team, Royal Melbourne Hospital, VIC; Rhys Hughes, Senior Speech Pathologist, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, VIC; Dr Annette Lim, Medical Oncologist and Clinician Researcher – Head and Neck and Non-melanoma Skin Cancer, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, VIC; Dr Sweet Ping Ng, Radiation Oncologist, Austin Health, VIC; Deb Pickersgill, Senior Clinical Exercise Physiologist, Queensland Sports Medicine Centre, QLD; John Spurr, Consumer; Kate Woodhead, Physiotherapist, St Vincent’s Health, Melbourne, VIC; A/Prof Sue-Ching Yeoh, Oral Medicine Specialist, University of Sydney, Sydney Oral Medicine, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Chris O’Brien Lifehouse, NSW.
View the Cancer Council NSW editorial policy.
