Staging
is the process of finding out how much cancer there is in a person’s body and
where it’s located. It’s how the doctor learns the stage of a person’s cancer.
Staging is needed so doctors can know the amount of cancer and where it
is in the body to be able to choose the best possible treatment. Doctors look for the original tumor and also
check for other tumors. They will look at the size, number, and location of any
tumors, to see if the cancer has spread far away. Doctors gather different types of information
about a cancer to figure out its stage. Depending on where the cancer is
located, the physical exam may give some clue as to how much cancer there is.
Imaging tests like x-rays, CT scans, MRIs, ultrasound, and PET scans may also
give information about how much and where cancer is in the body. A biopsy is often needed to confirm the
diagnosis of cancer. Biopsies are also needed to find out if an abnormal spot
on an imaging test is really cancer spread. A biopsy involves taking out tumors
or pieces of tumors and looking at them under the microscope. Some biopsies may
be done during surgery, but many types of biopsies are done by removing small
pieces of tumor through a thin needle or through a flexible lighted tube called
an endoscope. There are two types of staging: clinical and pathological. Clinical staging is an estimate of how much
cancer there is based on the physical exam, imaging tests (x-rays, CT scans,
etc.), and tumor biopsies. Pathological relies
on what is learned about the cancer during surgery. An important point some people have trouble
understanding is that the stage of a cancer does not change over time, even if
the cancer progresses. A cancer that comes back or spreads is still referred to
by the stage it was given when it was first found and diagnosed—information
about the current extent of the cancer is added to it.
Kathleen Kimmell
http://www.cancer.org/treatment/understandingyourdiagnosis/staging
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