Ear blockage after a flight leads to a life-changing NPC diagnosis
A 22-year-old California woman’s ear wouldn’t pop after a May 2025 flight, triggering months of symptoms that were initially dismissed as altitude sickness. A mass blocking her nasopharynx was later diagnosed as nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), a rare cancer in the U.S. associated with Epstein-Barr virus. After biopsies and imaging, she began chemotherapy and radiation and is nearing the end of treatment, with doctors optimistic that the cancer is shrinking and she may be cancer-free.
