Eureka! Institutional Repository

Head and neck cancer (HNC) and its medical treatment can cause negative effects on feeding capacity, communication and appearance, events that directly lead to a deterioration in patients' daily life. In particular, the clinical and biological heterogeneity of head and neck cancer can result in a great number of symptoms that affect the individual's quality of life such as pain, fatigue, nutritional problems, airway obstruction, voice alterations, and psychological distress. In addition, malnutrition, cancer cachexia, sarcopenia and dysphagia are undoubtedly frequent complications among sufferers, which lead to functional and social limitations, nutritional deficiencies, but also mood disorders. The purpose of this study was the systematic review of the complications resulting from head and neck cancer and the evaluation of the nutritional status of the patients. It is based on the study of contemporary scientific literature and research and it was conducted via PubMed and Google Scholar. The search included a combination of the various terms (keywords) in order to identify and display articles that would be as close as possible to the research topic.