Serious Symptoms Of Ear Cancer

Dizziness

Feelings of dizziness, disequilibrium, and vertigo are most commonly found in cancer that affects the inner ear. These symptoms develop in an individual when their ear cancer grows directly into their vestibular nerve or grows to the point where it compresses their vestibular nerve. The vestibular nerve is responsible for the communication of information to and from the brain that helps with maintaining balance and providing the correct perception of the position and orientation of the body relative to its surroundings. This mechanism does not cause a total loss of balance and equilibrium, as the other vestibular nerve on the unaffected side of the brain can compensate. However, this compensation is often not enough to keep away unsteadiness and dizziness.

Read more about the serious warning signs linked to ear cancer now.

Headaches

Cancer in the ear can grow large enough to where it comes in contact with and presses on the dura, the lining of the interior of the skull. The brain tissues do not have sensory nerve fibers and are not the cause of headaches in cancers that affect the head and neck. Sensory fibers in the dura can sense pressure from the growing tumor in the affected individual's inner ear. This sensory information regarding the compression of the nerve fibers is interpreted by the brain as pain and produces a headache. The headaches that develop due to ear cancer are usually unilateral, meaning they only occur on the affected side of the head. Many individuals who have experienced this symptom describe the headache pain to have dull or achy qualities and can radiate to the front of the head, neck, or top of the head.