Head and neck cancer may present with a neck mass, throat pain, voice changes, coughing or spitting up blood, difficulty swallowing/speaking, or a multitude of other ways. When there is a tumor in the back of the throat, an ENT surgeon/otolaryngologist can examine the throat and voicebox under anesthesia (direct laryngoscopy) and take a tissue sample (biopsy) to obtain a diagnosis. Sometimes a lymph node in the neck can be sampled with a needle, and this is sufficient for a diagnosis. Many biopsies can be performed under local anesthesia in the office after administering some numbing medication.

For more information, go to: https://www.mountsinai.org/locations/head-neck-institute

Featured Faculty

Eric M. Genden, MD, MHCA, FACS
Dr. Isidore Friesner Professor and Chair of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery
Senior Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs
Professor of Neurosurgery and Immunology
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Director, Head and Neck Institute-Center of Excellence for Head and Neck Cancer
Mount Sinai Health System

Michael Berger, MD
Assistant Professor, Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery
Division of Otology-Neurotology, Lateral Skull Base Surgery
Mount Sinai Health System

Raymond L. Chai, MD
Associate Professor, Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery
Mount Sinai Health System

Mohemmed Nazir Khan, MD
Assistant Professor, Department of Otolaryngology
Mount Sinai Union Square

Mark S. Courey, MD
Chief, Division of Laryngology
Director, Grabscheid Voice and Swallowing Center of Mount Sinai
Vice Chair of Quality, Department of Otolaryngology
Mount Sinai Health System

Diana N. Kirke, MD
Assistant Professor, Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery
The Mount Sinai Hospital

Scott Allan Roof, MD
Assistant Professor, Head and Neck Surgery
Mount Sinai Health System

Marita S. Teng, MD
Professor, Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery
Mount Sinai Health System

Mark Urken, MD
Chief, Division of Head and Neck Surgical Oncology,
Co-Director, Institute for Head and Neck and Thyroid Cancer,
Department of Otolaryngology, Mount Sinai Union Square
Mount Sinai Health System

Matthew C. Mori, MD
Assistant Professor, Otolaryngology
New York Eye & Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai

Zan Mra, MD
Assistant Professor, Otolaryngology
Mount Sinai Brooklyn

Edward J. Shin, MD
Professor, Ear, Nose, Throat (ENT) / Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery
New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai

Benjamin C. Tweel, MD
Medical Director, Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery
Mount Sinai Health System
Joshua Zeiger, MD
Assistant Professor, Department of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery
Mount Sinai Health System

Zachary G. Schwam, MD
Assistant Professor, Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery
Division of Otology-Neurotology, Lateral Skull Base Surgery
Mount Sinai Health System