Cervical Cancer Staging Simplified
When a patient is diagnosed, cervical cancer is accessed with a “staging” that helps determine how metastatic (spread) the cancer is. It also helps determine which other organs (if any) are affected by the disease. Since cervical cancer usually involves both surgery and radiation therapy to cure it, accurate staging is essential for the future health of the affected patient.
Although cancer staging is not an exact science, it is in fact a very good attempt at determining what to do next to help treat the patient. In addition to the staging, other factors must also be taken into account. For example: age, general health, previous medical history, etc., are all important factors that can influence the determination of any positive outcome for the patient.
The following stages are used to help classify cervical cancer (cervical cancer):
1. Internship 0 – Abnormal cells are found in the outer layer (the first layer) of cells lining the uterus.
two. Stage I – Although still confined to the uterus, the cervix is now involved (stage I is defined into six groups based on tumor size). [IA, IA1, IA1, IB, IB1, and IB2]).
3. Stage II – Cancer has spread to regional (nearby) areas, although it is still contained to the pelvic area (stage II is defined into two groups depending on whether the cancer has spread to the vagina [IIA] Y [IIB] when it has penetrated further into the pelvic area).
Four. Stave III – Indicates that the cancer has now metastasized to the entire pelvic area (stage III is further defined into two groups depending on whether the cancer has metastasized to the lower third of the vagina [IIIA]or more widely outside pelvic sidewall [IIIB]).
5. Stage IV – Shows that the cancer has now metastasized to other major organs in the body (stage IV is defined into two groups depending on which organs have been affected [IVA and IVB]):
Note: The higher the number of stages, the further the cancer has advanced throughout the body and a more aggressive treatment plan is needed to help cure the patient (cure rates decrease as the number of stages increases). Treatment may include the following: surgery, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, and biological therapy.