Staging of cancer is meant to help the medical practitioner to tell how far it has spread. You will have to go through a series of scans and tests to determine the extent of the pathology. From the results, effective treatment plans can then be put into action. Prostate cancer staging is therefore very important.
The TNM staging system is the commonly accepted technique of staging prostate cancer. It assesses metastases, lymph nodes and tumor separately. T staging comes first. In tumor stage 1, the malignancy cells are so insignificant such that they cannot be picked up by scans or the normal laboratory tests. A needle biopsy has to be done for confirmation purposes.
Stage two in the tumor classification system is divided into three. T2a means half of the prostate gland is affected while in T2b the area affected exceed half. In T3c, the whole of the gland has been invaded by the cancerous cells. In tumor stage 3, the capsule has been broken into by the cancerous cells. This stage also has been subdivided into T3a where the capsule is the only other place which has been affected besides the prostate gland and in T3b, seminal vesicles have been invaded by the cancerous cells.
Stage T4 tumors usually have metastasized. The common areas affected include the pelvic cavity, bladder and rectum. The T4 and T3 tumor stages are said to be locally advanced stages. These are the most difficult stages to treat.
Lymph nodes are said to be positive if they have been invaded by cancer cells. They will increase in size during this time. In stage NX, the lymph lodes have not been affected. In N0, the lymph node close to the prostate gland have no cancer cells but in N1 stage, the lymph nodes close to the gland have been affected
In metastasis staging, the first one is Mo where the malignancy has not spread out of pelvis. In M1, the malignancy has reached outside the pelvis. This stage has three subdivisions. In M1a, the cancerous cells have not affected the lymph nodes which are not in the pelvis while in M1b, the malignancy has spread to the bone. Last come M1c in which the cancer has spread to the rest of body organs. There are different things which have to be put into consideration when staging the cancer. Mostly, it is the invasiveness of the disease and its aggressiveness.
Locally advanced cancer of the prostate is confined to the gland but the metastatic type has spread. The places which are hardly hit are the bones and lymph nodes. However, many a times it reaches other body organs too.
Metastasis can occur when the tumor is still in its initial stages. That is why people are advised to regularly go for blood tests and scans for early diagnosis. If some cancerous cells are found in other body organs, immediate action should be taken to control the spread.
The TNM staging system is the commonly accepted technique of staging prostate cancer. It assesses metastases, lymph nodes and tumor separately. T staging comes first. In tumor stage 1, the malignancy cells are so insignificant such that they cannot be picked up by scans or the normal laboratory tests. A needle biopsy has to be done for confirmation purposes.
Stage two in the tumor classification system is divided into three. T2a means half of the prostate gland is affected while in T2b the area affected exceed half. In T3c, the whole of the gland has been invaded by the cancerous cells. In tumor stage 3, the capsule has been broken into by the cancerous cells. This stage also has been subdivided into T3a where the capsule is the only other place which has been affected besides the prostate gland and in T3b, seminal vesicles have been invaded by the cancerous cells.
Stage T4 tumors usually have metastasized. The common areas affected include the pelvic cavity, bladder and rectum. The T4 and T3 tumor stages are said to be locally advanced stages. These are the most difficult stages to treat.
Lymph nodes are said to be positive if they have been invaded by cancer cells. They will increase in size during this time. In stage NX, the lymph lodes have not been affected. In N0, the lymph node close to the prostate gland have no cancer cells but in N1 stage, the lymph nodes close to the gland have been affected
In metastasis staging, the first one is Mo where the malignancy has not spread out of pelvis. In M1, the malignancy has reached outside the pelvis. This stage has three subdivisions. In M1a, the cancerous cells have not affected the lymph nodes which are not in the pelvis while in M1b, the malignancy has spread to the bone. Last come M1c in which the cancer has spread to the rest of body organs. There are different things which have to be put into consideration when staging the cancer. Mostly, it is the invasiveness of the disease and its aggressiveness.
Locally advanced cancer of the prostate is confined to the gland but the metastatic type has spread. The places which are hardly hit are the bones and lymph nodes. However, many a times it reaches other body organs too.
Metastasis can occur when the tumor is still in its initial stages. That is why people are advised to regularly go for blood tests and scans for early diagnosis. If some cancerous cells are found in other body organs, immediate action should be taken to control the spread.
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