[Testosterone--an etiological factor in the development of laryngeal carcinoma?].

To evaluate the etiological connection between the development of hyperplastic lesions of the laryngeal mucosa (including cancer) and the male sex hormones, the authors determined the level of testosterone in the serum of patients with cancer of the larynx (25 women and 25 men) and patients with hyperplastic lesions of the mucous membrane of the larynx (15 women and 15 men). In patients who suffered from cancer of the larynx the serum level of testosterone was significantly increased compared to the control group. In the patients who had hyperplastic lesions (including precancerous lesions) of the laryngeal mucosa the differences in the concentration of the serum testosterone were not statistically significant from the control group. The same was also true of the testosterone-estradiol index. The results of the study do not help to explain the success of hormonal therapy for hyperplastic lesions of the laryngeal mucosa. The authors consider that endogenous factors, especially the male sex hormones, should be taken more into account, alongside exogenous factors, in the genesis of laryngeal cancer.