Stages of Disease
Staging, the process of determining the stage or level of progression
of an illness, is important in predicting the likelihood of metastasis.
It also influences treatment planning and determines prognosis. As the
stage of cancer increases, the risk of metastases increases. Depending
on the determined stage, your physician may advise various tests such
as x-rays, a bone scan and/or CAT scan to determine the presence or absence
of measurable metastasis. Cancer staging occurs after a sample taken from
a biopsy is examined by a pathologist. A process devised by the Federation
Internationale de Gynecologie et d'Obstetrique, or FIGO, is used to determine
a cancer's stage. This detailed system is similar to the TNM (tumor, node,
metastasis) system shown below. The TNM table shows the basic structure
of the staging process.
| Stage 1: | Tumor limited to ovaries (one or both) |
| Stage 2: | Tumor involves one or both ovaries but limited to the pelvis |
| Stage 3: | Tumor involves one or both ovaries with involvement outside the pelvis and to the regional lymph nodes |
| Stage 4: | Distant
spread or metastasis to other parts of the body |
The TNM system breaks down stages 2 and 3 even further, but such distinctions are not necessary for a basic understanding of staging.