Near fatal haemorrhage 35 years after radiation for laryngeal cancer: emergency embolisation of a vertebral artery aneurysm

The authors report a rare case of a 75 year old man who presented 35 years after radiotherapy for carcinoma of the larynx, with catastrophic bleeding through the mouth. Both the time and mode of presentation were unusual. The patient required emergency sacrifice of the left vertebral artery to stop the bleeding. The literature has been reviewed.