Neck uterus. Thus the adjective "cervical" may refer either to the neck (as in "cervical vertebrae" or "cervical lymph nodes") or to the uterine cervix (as in "cervical cap" or "cervical cancer"). The neck contains vessels that link structures in the head to the body. In humans these structures include part of the esophagus, larynx, trachea, thyroid and parathyroid glands, lymph nodes, and the first part of the spinal cord. Major blood vessels present include the carotid arteries and the jugular veins. Cervical lymph nodes surround the blood vessels. The thyroid gland and parathyroid gland are endocrine glands involved in the
Head and neck cancer are fundamentally distinct diseases. Although early-stage head and neck cancers (especially laryngeal and oral cavity) have high cure rates, up to 50% of people with head and neck cancer present with advanced disease. Cure rates decrease in locally advanced cases, whose probability of cure is inversely related to tumor size and even more so to the extent of regional node involvement. Consensus panels in America (AJCC) and Europe (UICC) have established staging systems for head and neck squamous-cell cancers. These staging systems attempt to standardize clinical trial criteria for research studies, and attempt to define prognostic categories of disease. Squamous