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What is staging for lung cancer?As soon as you are diagnosed with lung cancer, your doctor will determine the stage or extent of the disease. This involves finding out how large the tumor is and if it has spread to other parts of the body. Learning the stage of your lung cancer helps the doctors determine the best treatment option. In general, early stage cancers have a better prognosis than late stage cancers. 
The most common system used to describe stages of lung cancer is the TNM staging system, which stands for tumor, node, metastasis. Tumor (T) indicates the size of the tumor and if the tumor is confined to the lung or if it has gone through the wall of the lung. Node (N) indicates whether or not the cancer is in the lymph nodes. Metastasis (M) means spread beyond the lung. What is a pathologist?A pathologist is a doctor who identifies disease by studying cells and tissues under the microscope. |
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Virginia Piper Cancer Institute
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