A 56-year-old man with a history of cigarette smoking presents with difficulty swallowing and a muffled voice. Laryngoscopy reveals a 2-cm laryngeal mass. If this mass is a malignant neoplasm, which of the following is the most likely histologic diagnosis?
High-Yield Explanation
Squamous cell carcinoma. The vast majority of laryngeal cancers are squamous cell carcinomas and occur principally in smokers. Adenocarcinoma (choice A), leiomyosarcoma (choice B), and small cell carcinoma (choice C) are rarely encountered in the larynx.Diagnosis: Laryngeal cancer