In medicine, lung cancer staging is the assessment of the degree to which a lung cancer has spread from its original source. As with most cancers, staging is an important determinant of treatment and prognosis. In general, more advanced stages of cancer portend a poorer prognosis and are less amenable to treatment.
There are several methods, or modalities, by which this assessment is made. They are broadly classified into non-invasive techniques,...
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In medicine, lung cancer staging is the assessment of the degree to which a lung cancer has spread from its original source. As with most cancers, staging is an important determinant of treatment and prognosis. In general, more advanced stages of cancer portend a poorer prognosis and are less amenable to treatment.
There are several methods, or modalities, by which this assessment is made. They are broadly classified into non-invasive techniques, which generally involve medical imaging of the lungs such as computer tomography (CT) scans, and invasive techniques such as biopsy. Invasive techniques provide additional information because tissue samples can be seen microscopically to determine the type of lung cancer and its grade.
Lung cancer is responsible for 1.3 million deaths worldwide annually, and is the most common cause of cancer-related death in men and the second most common in women. The most common cause of lung cancer is long-term exposure to tobacco smoke. Lung cancer in...
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