Staging
The main goal of staging cancer is to determine the extent of the disease. Endometrial cancer also is graded to aid in the evaluation.
Most endometrial cancers are staged according to a surgical system approved in 1988 by the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics. Factors used to stage the disease include the depth of the tumor, whether the tumor has spread to the cervix and other nearby organs, the cytology of the cancer (cellular make-up and activity), whether it has metastasized to the lymph nodes, and the extent to which it has spread to other parts of the body.
Endometrial cancer in patients who are unable to undergo surgical evaluation, is staged using an older, clinical staging system.
FIGO Surgical Stages For Endometrial Cancer
| Stage I | The tumor is confined to the uterine fundus (the body of the uterus). |
| Stage IA | The tumor is limited to the endometrium (the lining of the uterus). |
| Stage IB | The tumor invades less than one-half of the myometrial thickness (the myometrium is the muscular tissue that is found just beneath the endometrium). |
| Stage IC | The tumor invades more than one-half of the myometrial thickness. |
| Stage II | The tumor extends to the cervix (the lower part of the uterus). |
| Stage IIA | Cervical extension is limited to the endocervical glands (glands in the inner lining of the uterus, where the cervix meets the uterus). |
| Stage IIB | Tumor invades the cervical stroma (the supporting connective tissue of the cervix). |
| Stage III | There is regional tumor spread. |
| Stage IIIA | The tumor invades the uterine serosa (the layer of tissue that surrounds the outside of the uterus), or adnexa (tissues on either side of the uterus), or cells in the peritoneum (the member surrounding the abdominal cavity) show signs of cancer. |
| Stage IIIB | Vaginal metastases are present. |
| Stage IIIC | The tumor has spread to lymph nodes near the uterus. |
| Stage IV | There is bulky pelvic disease or distant spread. |
| Stage IVA | Tumor has spread to the bladder or rectum. |
| Stage IVB | Distant metastases are present. |
| Stage 1 | The tumor is limited to the uterine body. |
| Stage 1A | Uterine cavity measures 8 cm or less. |
| Stage 1B | Uterine cavity measures greater than 8 cm. |
| Stage 2 | Tumor extends to the uterine cervix. |
| Stage 3 | Tumor has spread to the adjacent pelvic structures. |
| Stage 4 | Bulky pelvic disease or distant spread. |
| Stage 4A | The tumor invades the mucosa of the bladder or rectum. |
| Stage 4B | Distant metastasis is present. |
Physician-developed and -monitored.
Original Date of Publication: 15 Aug 1999
Reviewed by: Stanley J. Swierzewski, III, M.D.
Last Reviewed: 04 Dec 2007
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