Cancer levels and staging

dmnyank1

New Member
:howdy:
dems4me said:
Can we get back on topic? Does anyone offhand have an easy way to explain the difference of levels and stages when it comes to cancer?

I'll give it a shot... I am 99% sure that levels and staging are the same method of telling how advanced it is for the type of cancer it is.... cancer is typically "staged" but is all dependent on the type of cancer it is. It's not where it's found, it's what kind it is (meaning if there is a tumor found in the brain, it is not necessarily brain cancer...it could be "breast cancer" that has spread, etc.).

There is a pretty good link (http://cancerguide.org/basic.html) to the staging process that might help on basics... The best sites for cancer info overall are through the Natl Cancer Institute (NCI) at www.cancer.gov (which has a pretty good terminology dictionary under "Dictionary of Cancer Terms" --- nothing here on "levels", but the breakdown on "staging" is good. The other is the MD Anderson site at http://www.mdanderson.org.

TMI? :howdy:
 
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Wenchy

Guest
dems4me said:
Can we get back on topic? Does anyone offhand have an easy way to explain the difference of levels and stages when it comes to cancer?

The level is what is found in blood tests. The stage is the actual tumor(s) itself, and any lymph glands that are affected. They do correlate.

Did that make more sense?

My MIL was diagnosed with stage 4 ovarian, and she is still around to pester me 15 years after the fact. :yahoo:
 
D

dems4me

Guest
Thanks from what I understand this person has Level IV skin cancer, its in several areas on the body. They did a biopsy at .58 mm and the cancer was there... today they did another biposy at .75mm and said its at that level that it spreads to your lymph nodes and other organs.... Its malignant menalona. No word yet (obviously) on the biposy done today... I'm praying its nots at .75mm (although it doesn't seem that much furtherdown than .58 woudl be)... this person had a mystery patch for several years that was dark red about 6 inches long on shoulder... went to dr. and they found other patches on the back and head... they biopsied at .58 immediately and its skin cancer. Today they did a biposy deeper at .75. Thats about all I know now other than there was confusion from person on whether it was level IV or dr. said stage IV. Its starting to make some sense know... I think... thanks.
 

forever jewel

Green Eyed Lady
Hope your friend gets good news! :huggy:

My aunt was diagnosed with Stage 4 colon cancer almost two years ago and she's still going through treatment, mainly just to control it. She's a fighter...

Prayers for you and your friend :huggy:
 

Rane

Lookin for Margaritaville
BS Gal said:
I should probably take the sunscreen to Key West next weekend.

Yes you should BS Gal ... my brother battled skin cancer 6 years ago , basically spent a year of his life sick because of the interferon treatments 3 x a week ... melanoma is a very aggressive type of cancer , makes a person rethink about a tan being important ... thank god he is cancer free now ... if you've never been to Key West ... the sun is much more intense there .. I lived there for 3 years ... I have freckles now thanks to all that time I spent in the sun there .... While you are there you can use sunscreen to protect your skin as much as possible and still come home with a light tan ... I hope you enjoy your vacation :smile:
 

bresamil

wandering aimlessly
dems4me said:
Thanks from what I understand this person has Level IV skin cancer, its in several areas on the body. They did a biopsy at .58 mm and the cancer was there... today they did another biposy at .75mm and said its at that level that it spreads to your lymph nodes and other organs.... Its malignant menalona. No word yet (obviously) on the biposy done today... I'm praying its nots at .75mm (although it doesn't seem that much furtherdown than .58 woudl be)... this person had a mystery patch for several years that was dark red about 6 inches long on shoulder... went to dr. and they found other patches on the back and head... they biopsied at .58 immediately and its skin cancer. Today they did a biposy deeper at .75. Thats about all I know now other than there was confusion from person on whether it was level IV or dr. said stage IV. Its starting to make some sense know... I think... thanks.

When I was diagnosed with malignant melanoma stage 2 I was freaking out but remembered an old thread on here about skin cancer. I read that thread which is full of tidbits. I talked to Badgirl who had Clarks IV melanoma and went through all the fun treatments and she really put my mind at ease as to what it all REALLY meant. Sometimes its easier to understand when you talk to someone that's been through it. My doctor has said that melanoma is no longer the death sentence it used to be, due to more awareness and folks recognizing the problem earlier.
 

BadGirl

I am so very blessed
dems4me said:
Can we get back on topic? Does anyone offhand have an easy way to explain the difference of levels and stages when it comes to cancer?
Dems, there is a HUGE difference between levels of cancer and stages of cancer. I know in my experience that I had Level IV melanoma, which meant that the cancer had reached a signnificant depth in my arm almost down to my bone. Here is a quick run-down on the Levels of skin cancer:

The staging is based on these measurements, and is classified as follows:
  • Melanoma in-situ - the melanoma is present only in the epidermis; a Breslow thickness and Clark's level are not determined for this early stage lesion
  • Stage I - less than 1 mm thick
  • Stage II - greater than 1 mm thick or Clark's level IV-V (invasion into reticular dermis or subcutaneous tissue)
  • Stage III - has spread to local lymph nodes (may or may not have known of a primary lesion) or Clark's level V (invades subcutaneous tissue)
  • Stage IV - presents with distant metastasis (most commonly liver, lung, and brain)
Now, here is a link that can help you find the definition for cancer stages for specific types of cancer. http://www.cancercenter.com/cancer-stages-sitemap.htm .

Keep in mind that different cancers have different criteris of stages, and have different levels in each stage.

Like I said, I had Level IV skin cancer, which was bad enough, but if I had applied that same Level IV to the general stages of cancer, I would have been classified as having pervasive and terminal cancer in almost all of my internal organs - and I most certainly did not have that going on. thank goodness!

It's good that you're doing research...but make sure that the info that you read is complete and accurate, and don't let the terminology scare you too much. And for heavens sake, don't read too much, or it will scare you to death!
 
D

dems4me

Guest
BadGirl said:
Dems, there is a HUGE difference between levels of cancer and stages of cancer. I know in my experience that I had Level IV melanoma, which meant that the cancer had reached a signnificant depth in my arm almost down to my bone. Here is a quick run-down on the Levels of skin cancer:

The staging is based on these measurements, and is classified as follows:
  • Melanoma in-situ - the melanoma is present only in the epidermis; a Breslow thickness and Clark's level are not determined for this early stage lesion
  • Stage I - less than 1 mm thick
  • Stage II - greater than 1 mm thick or Clark's level IV-V (invasion into reticular dermis or subcutaneous tissue)
  • Stage III - has spread to local lymph nodes (may or may not have known of a primary lesion) or Clark's level V (invades subcutaneous tissue)
  • Stage IV - presents with distant metastasis (most commonly liver, lung, and brain)
Now, here is a link that can help you find the definition for cancer stages for specific types of cancer. http://www.cancercenter.com/cancer-stages-sitemap.htm .

Keep in mind that different cancers have different criteris of stages, and have different levels in each stage.

Like I said, I had Level IV skin cancer, which was bad enough, but if I had applied that same Level IV to the general stages of cancer, I would have been classified as having pervasive and terminal cancer in almost all of my internal organs - and I most certainly did not have that going on. thank goodness!

It's good that you're doing research...but make sure that the info that you read is complete and accurate, and don't let the terminology scare you too much. And for heavens sake, don't read too much, or it will scare you to death!

Thanks :huggy: I feel alot better now! :huggy:
 
D

dems4me

Guest
Chasey_Lane said:
Had this been July, next week you may have started a sunburn thread. :lol:

:huggy:

Probably, once I get through my base burn I always seem to be ok and maintain a tan and if it rains one weekend and I cant get a maintenance tan for protection of the sun, I'll got to the tanning salon. Once I'm tan I'm ok. :huggy:
 

morganj614

New Member
dems4me said:
Probably, once I get through my base burn I always seem to be ok and maintain a tan and if it rains one weekend and I cant get a maintenance tan for protection of the sun, I'll got to the tanning salon. Once I'm tan I'm ok. :huggy:

:smack: stay out of the tanning beds!!! You can still get color with a sunscreen.

I'm still waiting on my results and my stitches are itchy as hell :lmao:
 
W

Wenchy

Guest
dems4me said:
Probably, once I get through my base burn I always seem to be ok and maintain a tan and if it rains one weekend and I cant get a maintenance tan for protection of the sun, I'll got to the tanning salon. Once I'm tan I'm ok. :huggy:

:smack: :smack: :smack:

Are you insane, an idiot or just pretending for the drama quotient?

Dems...come on now, you really can't be serious.
 
D

dems4me

Guest
Wenchy said:
:smack: :smack: :smack:

Are you insane, an idiot or just pretending for the drama quotient?

Dems...come on now, you really can't be serious.


:smack: stop :smack: ing me :smack:
 
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