Stages of Endometrial Cancer
Diagnosing which stage the patient is in helps doctors find out how far cancer spreads, and it is also critical for the following treatments. According to the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics system and the American Joint Committee on Cancer TNM staging system, endometrial cancer could be generally classified based on the below three factors:
Tumor (T): The extent (size) of the tumor
Lymph nodes (N): The spread to nearby lymph nodes
Metastasis (M): The spread (metastasis) to distant sites
When your doctor figures out the TNM staging, the doctor would conclude a broader set of stages using Roman numerals of I, II, III, and IV.
Stage I
In Stage I, the cancer is still growing inside of your uterus, affecting the glands of your cervix.
Stage II
At this point, cancer has spread into the tissue of the cervix. However, it has not reached outside the uterus.
Stage III
In this phase, cancer has spread outside the cervix, affecting the ovaries, fallopian tubes, vagina, or lymph nodes.
Stage IV
Cancerous cells are found in the rectum, urinary bladder, and other distant organs such as the lower abdomen, liver, lungs, or bones. [4]
