Surgery is commonly used to treat laryngeal and hypopharyngeal cancers. Depending on the type, stage, location of the cancer, and other tissues involved, different operations may be used to remove the cancer and sometimes other tissues near the larynx or hypopharynx. In almost all surgeries, the plan is to take out all of the cancer along with a rim (margin) of healthy tissue around it. Surgery might be the only treatment needed for some early stage cancers. It also might be used along with other treatments, like chemotherapy or radiation, for later stage cancers. After the cancer is removed, reconstructive surgery may be done to help make the changed areas look and work better.