第2263期:Man Regains his Voice with the Help of a rare Medical Operation

But cancer is the biggest reason for voice loss. The American Cancer Society estimates that more than 12,600 people will be found to have some form of laryngeal cancer this year.
但是，癌症是导致失声的最大原因。美国癌症协会估计，今年将有超过12,600人被发现患有某种形式的喉癌。

While today many undergo voice-preserving treatment, thousands of people have had their larynx completely removed. These people often breathe through what is called a tracheostomy tube in their neck. They can struggle to communicate.
虽然今天许多人接受了保留声音的治疗，但仍有数千人的喉部被完全切除。这些人通常通过颈部的气管造口管呼吸。他们可能在交流上面临困难。

Although the earlier U.S. recipients were able to reach near normal speech, doctors have not fully accepted these transplants. That is partly because people can survive without a larynx. At the same time, special drugs that limit the immune system could create new or reappearing tumors.
尽管早期的美国受体能够达到接近正常的言语水平，但医生们尚未完全接受这些移植。这部分原因是因为人们可以在没有喉部的情况下生存。同时，限制免疫系统的特殊药物可能会导致新的或复发的肿瘤。

“We want to be able to push those boundaries but do it as safely and ethically as we can,” Lott said.
“我们希望能够突破这些界限，但要尽可能安全和道德地进行，”洛特说。

Head-and-neck specialists say the Mayo trial is important to helping larynx transplants become a choice.
头颈部专家表示，梅奥的试验对于帮助喉部移植成为一种选择非常重要。

“It isn’t a ‘one-off,’” but an opportunity to finally learn from one patient before operating on the next, said Dr. Marshall Strome, who led the 1998 transplant in Cleveland.
“这不是一次性的，”领导1998年克利夫兰移植的马歇尔·斯特罗姆博士说，“而是一个在为下一个病人进行手术前，最终从一个病人身上学习的机会。”

This first attempt in a cancer patient “is the next important step,” he said.
他说，在癌症患者身上进行的首次尝试“是下一个重要步骤。”

Other possibilities are being studied, noted Dr. Peter Belafsky of UC Davis, who helped perform the 2010 transplant. His patients at high risk of larynx loss record their voice in hopes of using new speech devices that sound like them. Belafsky said larynx transplants might become more common. But he warned it likely will take years of additional research.
帮助进行2010年移植的加州大学戴维斯分校的彼得·贝拉夫斯基博士指出，其他可能性正在研究中。他的高风险喉部丧失的病人录下他们的声音，希望使用听起来像他们的新语音设备。贝拉夫斯基说，喉部移植可能会变得更为普遍。但他警告说，这可能需要数年的额外研究。

Doctors told Kedian he had a rare laryngeal cartilage cancer about 10 years ago. He had to retire with disability assistance.
医生告诉克迪安，他大约在10年前患上了罕见的喉软骨癌。他不得不带着残疾辅助金退休。

Kedian used to be known for long talks with strangers. He would not let doctors remove his entire larynx to cure the cancer. He wanted to read bedtime stories to his granddaughter, with his own voice rather than what he called robotic-sounding speech devices.
克迪安以前以与陌生人长时间交谈而闻名。他不让医生为了治愈癌症而移除整个喉部。他想用自己的声音而不是他所说的机器人般的语音设备给孙女读睡前故事。

“Every day it’s getting better,” said Kedian, who is expected to move back to Massachusetts soon. His tracheostomy will remain in place for at least a few more months. But, he said, “I’m pushing myself to make it go faster because I want these tubes out of me, to go back to a normal life.”
“每天都在变好，”预计很快会搬回马萨诸塞州的克迪安说。他的气管造口至少还要保持几个月。但他说，“我在逼自己让它快点，因为我想让这些管子从我身体里移走回归正常生活。”