Abstract
Objective: To determine the frequency of hypo pharyngeal carcinoma in patients presenting with dysphagia.
Material and Methods: This descriptive study was conducted at the department of Ear, Nose, Throat, Head and Neck Surgery, Postgraduate Medical Institute Lady Reading Hospital Peshawar from Jan. 2005 to Dec. 2010. It included 75 cases of hypopharyngeal carcinoma presented with dysphagia. All the patients were thoroughly evaluated in terms of history, examination and investigation. Rigid/ flexible endoscopy was performed and biopsy specimens were examined by same histopathologist and data was analyzed using SPSS version 17. Results: Out of 75 patients 43 were male and 32 were female, with male: female ratio of 1.34: 1.The age of the patients ranged from 34-83 years with mean age of 57.26 + S.D 14.01years. Most of the patients presented in 6th and 7th decade followed by the 5th and 4th decade of life. The main clinical features of these patients were progressive dysphagia (92%) and hoarseness (37.33%). Rigid hypopharyngoscopy was the commonest procedure of diagnosis (70.66%). Squamous cell carcinoma was the commonest (97.33%) tumour in these patients. Pyriform fossa was the commonest site of carcinoma hypopharynx (44%).
Conclusion: We can conclude that squamous cell carcinoma is the commonest tumour of hypopharynx. Pyriform fossa is the commonest site of affection in hypopharyngeal carcinoma. Hypopharyngeal carcinoma should be suspected if a male patients aged between 40 to 60 years presented with dysphagia.

Key words: Hypopharynx, Squamous cell carcinoma, dysphagia.