Expert Insight on Tonsil Cancer: The Diagnosis of Widespread Panic Guitarist

Widespread Panic

Photo by Joshua Timmermans, courtesy of Widespread Panic

Tonsil cancer made headlines recently when Georgia jam band Widespread Panic announced on July 21 that it was canceling a series of late July concerts in Asheville, North Carolina due to guitarist Jimmy Herring, 62, receiving a diagnosis of stage 1 tonsil cancer.

“He will begin treatment immediately and is expected to make a full recovery. That part we’re happy to report,” the band posted on Facebook and Instagram. “… We thank everyone for their concern and blessings as Jimmy and his family go through this healing process. Let the healing begin.”

“Sending a swift recovery to one of the greatest guitarists ever,” commented singer/songwriter Margo Price on the band’s Instagram post announcing Herring’s diagnosis. “We love you, Jimmy!”

The band subsequently canceled concerts scheduled for late August in Boston and late September in Las Vegas, it announced in a subsequent Facebook post.

Expert Insight on Tonsil Cancer

One expert told CURE® that the stage of cancer Herring was diagnosed with is “very curable,” though the current standard treatment is accompanied by notable side effects, including the potential for hearing loss and nerve damage.

“Basically, stage 1 is curable,” Dr. Nabil Saba, a professor in the Department of Hematology and Medical Oncology at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, said during an interview with CURE®.

Tonsil cancer, according to the Mayo Clinic, is an abnormal growth of cells in a tonsil — two oval-shaped pads in the back of the mouth that are part of the immune system. Patients with the disease can experience difficulty swallowing and a sensation that something is caught in their throat, as well as swelling and pain in the neck, earache and jaw stiffness, according to the Mayo Clinic.

The middle part of the throat behind the mouth (also known as the oral cavity), the oropharynx includes the base of the tongue, the soft palate at the back of the roof of the mouth, the tonsils and the side and back walls of the throat, according to the American Cancer Society (ACS). The ACS estimated that there will be approximately 58,450 new cases of oral cavity or oropharyngeal cancer and 12,230 deaths from the diseases in 2024. The average age of people diagnosed with these cancers is 64, and the lifetime risk of developing oral cavity and oropharyngeal cancer is 1 in 59 for men and 1 in 139 for women, the ACS stated.

Risk factors for oral cavity and oropharyngeal cancers include alcohol and tobacco use, human papillomavirus (HPV) infection, sex, age, excess body weight and poor nutrition, according to the ACS.

Side Effects from Tonsil Cancer Treatment

While there has been some interest in recent years in de-escalating to less toxic treatments and investigating robotic surgery, the “gold standard” for treatment, Saba said, remains treatment with radiation and cisplatin chemotherapy.

Toxicities associated with cisplatin, Saba said, include hearing loss, nerve damage and kidney damage.

“It's an old drug, but it's a very strong partner with radiation, which is why it keeps coming on top, even though we try to always beat it with something else,” Saba said of cisplatin. “But you know, we haven't been able to replace it as of yet.”

However, side effects of cisplatin such as hearing loss or neuropathy — defined by the National Cancer Institute as a nerve problem causing pain, numbness, tingling, swelling of weakness starting in the hands or feet — can be of concern to providers when treating a patient who is a musician, such as Herring.

“If they’re using an instrument and they need dexterity in their hands, neuropathy from cisplatin may also be a limiting factor,” said Saba. “So, we have to take that into account when we offer these treatments to patients.”

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