From the Director
Approximately 70,000 patients are diagnosed with cancer of the head and neck in the United States each year. These cancers may arise in the oral cavity, pharynx, larynx, salivary glands, nose and paranasal sinuses, and thyroid gland. Other malignancies may originate in the bone, skin and other soft tissues of the head and neck. Many of these cancers are responsive to treatment, but the therapies are complex, and the quality of life for survivors may be impaired. A team of Hopkins multidisciplinary specialists has been organized to address these issues.

Patient care is only one component of the Johns Hopkins Head and Neck Cancer Center; the Center is also a world leader in basic and clinical research in head and neck cancer. Center researchers are investigating causes of head and neck cancer at the molecular level as well as searching for new methods of early cancer detection and prevention. In addition, new approaches to cancer treatment include tumor vaccines and immunotherapy.


The Center also trains physicians of the future to care for patients with head and neck cancer.

Please feel free to browse our site and we hope you learn a little more about Head and Neck Cancer.

Wayne Koch, MD
Director - Head and Neck Cancer Center
Professor - Otolaryngology - Head & Neck Surgery and Oncology