Stage I: Cancer has not grown beyond the area where it began. The cancer may be confined to the supraglottis, the glottis or the subglottis. In all Stage I cancers, the vocal cords can still move normally.

Stage II: The cancer has spread to nearby structures but is still in the larynx and has not spread to lymph nodes or to other parts of the body. Cancer may occur in the supraglottis (the cancer is in more than one area of the supraglottis, but the vocal cords can move normally); the glottis (the cancer has spread to the supraglottis or the subglottis or both, and the vocal cords may or may not be able to move normally); or the subglottis (the cancer has spread to the vocal cords, which may or may not be able to move normally.).

Stage III: The vocal cords cannot move normally but the cancer has not spread outside of the larynx or the cancer has spread to tissues near the larynx. The cancer has spread to one lymph node on the same side of the neck as the cancer and the lymph node measures no more than 3 centimeters across.

Stage IV: The cancer has spread to tissues around the larynx such as the pharynx, and the lymph nodes in the area may or may not contain cancer. The cancer may have spread to more than one lymph node on the same side of the neck as the cancer, to lymph nodes on one or both sides of the neck, or to any lymph node that measures more than 6 centimeters. Cancer may also have spread to other parts of the body.