Risk factors of cancer of the larynx: results of the Heidelberg case-control study.

Squamous cell carcinoma of the larynx is a multifactorial disease. It is firmly linked to several environmental risk factors. In the meanwhile, a considerable amount of epidemiologic evidence has been built up to implicate chronic consumption of alcohol and tobacco, occupation, diet, and social status in the etiology of the laryngeal cancer. Herein is a report from the first case-control study on the role of these risk factors conducted in a German population of patients with laryngeal cancer.