Lung Cancer Diagnosis

If you are diagnosed with lung cancer, your doctor will determine the stage (or extent) of the disease. This is a way to classify the cancer by how far and to which parts of the body it has spread. Staging helps the doctor plan the best treatment for you. Once the staging classification is determined, it stays the same even if treatment works or the cancer spreads.

Staging is often the most important part of your treatment. If the cancer is staged improperly, you may not receive the right treatment.

(source: National Cancer Institute)

Small-cell lung cancer stages

Limited stage: Cancer is in one lung and possibly in lymph nodes on the same side of the chest.

Extensive stage: Cancer has spread to the other lung, to lymph nodes on the other side of the chest, to the fluid around the lung or to other parts of the body.

Non-small cell lung cancer stages

Stage 0 through stage IB tumors in which cancer has not spread to the lymph nodes are considered early stage lung cancer.

Occult stage: Lung cancer cells are found in spit or in a sample of mucus (phlegm) taken during bronchoscopy, but a tumor cannot be seen in the lung by imaging or bronchoscopy, or a tumor is present but is too small to be biopsied.

Stage 0: Abnormal cells are found only in the innermost lining of the lung. The tumor has not grown through this lining. A stage 0 tumor is also called carcinoma in situ. The tumor is not an invasive cancer.

Stage 1A: The lung tumor is an invasive cancer. It has grown through the innermost lining of the lung into deeper lung tissue. The tumor is no more than 3 centimeters across. It is surrounded by normal tissue and does not invade the bronchus. Lung cancer cells are not found in nearby lymph nodes.

Stage 1B: The tumor is larger or has grown deeper, but lung cancer cells are not found in nearby lymph nodes. The lung tumor is one of the following:

• More than 3 centimeters across
• Grown into the main bronchus
• Grown through the lung into the pleura

Stage 2A: The lung tumor is no more than 3 centimeters across. Lung cancer cells are found in nearby lymph nodes.

Stage 2B: The lung cancer is one of the following:

• Not found in nearby lymph nodes but has invaded the chest wall, diaphragm, pleura, main bronchus or tissue that surrounds the heart
• Cancer cells are found in nearby lymph nodes and the tumor in the lung is one of the following:
• More than 3 centimeters across
• Grown into the main bronchus
• Grown through the lung into the pleura

Stage 3A: The tumor may be any size. Lung cancer cells are found in the lymph nodes near the lungs and bronchi and in the lymph nodes between the lungs on the same side of the chest as the lung tumor.

Stage 3B: The tumor may be any size. Lung cancer cells are found on the opposite side of the chest from the lung tumor or in the neck. The tumor may have invaded nearby organs, such as the heart, esophagus or trachea. More than one malignant growth may be found within the same lobe of the lung. Cancer cells may be found in the pleural fluid.

Stage 4: Tumors may be found in more than one lobe of the same lung or in the other lung. Lung cancer cells may be found in other parts of the body, such as the brain, adrenal gland, liver or bone.