[Magnesium content of laryngeal precancerous conditions and laryngeal cancers].

The content of magnesium in tissues, erythrocytes and serum was analysed by atomic absorption spectrometry. A higher concentration of magnesium was found in malignant laryngeal tissue and in lymph nodes of the neck compared to homologous pre-cancerous tissue. In pre-cancerous lesions of the larynx the magnesium concentration of the erythrocytes and serum lay at the lower limit of normal. In patients with cancer of the larynx, the magnesium concentration was considerably below the normal levels and continued to decline as the disease progressed.