STAGING OF CANCER
A cancer is always referred to by the stage it was given at diagnosis, even if it gets worse or spreads. New information about how a cancer has changed over time gets added onto the original stage. So, the stage doesn’t change, even though the cancer might. Learn more on our blog post, The ABCs and 123s of Cancer Stages.
- Stage 0: Abnormal cells are present but have not spread to nearby tissue. Also called carcinoma in situ, or CIS. CIS is not cancer, but it may become cancer.
- Stage I, Stage II, and Stage III: Cancer is present. The higher the number, the larger the cancer tumor and the more it has spread into nearby tissues.
- Stage IV: The cancer has spread to distant parts of the body.
Source: cancer.org