To determine the best course of treatment, physicians must consider all of the information found during the clinical examination and additional testing to accurately stage the cancer. Cervical staging is done most often with the FIGO (International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics) System. This system uses Stages 0 through IV, with the progression of stages matching the progression of disease, and also stages any disease that returns after treatment as "recurrent." Unlike many other cancer stages, cervical cancer stages are based on the information from the physician's clinical examination, before surgery, rather than information from surgery. If tissue removed from the body during surgery reveals that cancer has spread further than had been diagnosed originally, treatment may be altered but the patient's FIGO stage does not change.
Stages used for cancer of the cervix, according to the FIGO Staging System, are:
Stage 0: Also called carcinoma in situ. The abnormal cells are found only in the surface layer of cells of the cervix and do not invade the deeper tissues of the cervix.
Stage I: Cancer involves the cervix but has not spread beyond it.
IA: A very small amount of cancer that is only visible under a microscope is found invading into the tissues of the cervix.
IA1: The cancer depth is <3 millimeters, about 1/8-inch, deep and <7 millimeters, about 1/3-inch, wide.
IA2: The cancer depth is 3 to 5 millimeters, about 1/5-inch, deep and <7 millimeters, about 1/3-inch, wide.
IB: A larger amount of cancer is found in the tissues of the cervix.
IB1: The cancer diameter is no larger than 4 centimeters.
IB2: The cancer diameter is larger than 4 centimeters.
Stage II: Cancer has spread to nearby areas but not beyond the pelvic area.
IIA: Cancer has spread beyond the cervix to the upper two thirds of the vagina.
IIB: Cancer has spread to the tissue around the cervix.
Stage III: Cancer has spread throughout the pelvic area. Cancer cells may have spread to the lower part of the vagina. The cells also may have spread to block the tubes that connect the kidneys to the bladder (the ureters).
Stage IV: Cancer has spread to other parts of the body.
IVA: Cancer has spread to the bladder or rectum (organs close to the cervix).
IVB: Cancer has spread to far away organs such as the lungs.
Recurrent: Recurrent disease means that the cancer has come back (recurred) after it has been treated. It may come back in the cervix or elsewhere.
Copyright © 2000 Oncology.com, Inc. All rights reserved.
