The stages of lung cancer are not known by the majority of those who have this disease. Many times the cancer is only found out after it has been growing and is advanced. Read this article and learn about the stages of lung cancer and the ways it can spread.
The disease called lung cancer is divided up into “small cell” lung cancer and “non small cell” lung cancer. For the stages of lung cancer with the title of “small cell” the stages are divided into two simple levels. The first is called “limited stage” and means the cancer is confined to one lung only. This limited stage can also have cancer between the tissues of the lungs and to the lymph nodes that are nearby. The second and last stage of small cell cancer is called “extensive stage” and means the cancer has spread or metastasized to reach outside the lung in which it started and may be growing in other areas of the body. The defining moment for the stages of lung cancer in this first type is when it begins to reach out to other places in the body.
The stages of lung cancer for non-small lung cancer are more complicated. The first stage is really a pre-cancerous stage. It is called the “stage 0″ or “hidden stage”. During this stage, there is no tumor that can be found, but cancer cells are being coughed up. Pre-cancerous cells can be found in the lung and transform into cancer cells and spread into healthy tissue. This is the first of the five stages of lung cancer.
Stage II of the stages of lung cancer is defined by a few variables. If the cancer has spread to lymph nodes on the same side of the chest as the lung cancer, stage II has begun. Stage IIa is is defined by the cancer tumor being three centimeters or less and the lymph nodes are now invaded by cancer on the same side of the chest that holds the tumor. Stage IIb is is a tumor larger than three centimeters or has spread to the main tube ( bronchus ) of that lung and is two centimeters or more from the area where the windpipe joins the tubes of the lung. Two centimeters is around one inch. Another aspect of stage IIb can be a tumor that is partially blocking the main tube of the lung it is in and part of the lung has collapsed or has inflammation. Yet another characteristic of stage IIb is that the cancer has not spread to lymph nodes but can be of any size and has spread to other localized areas such as the chest wall or diaphragm. Lung cancer that is two centimeters from the spot where the windpipe ( trachea ) meets the tubes of the lung but is not in the lymph nodes is classified as stage IIb lung cancer. This is also the case if the lung has collapsed from the cancer or the affected lung has inflammation.
Stage III in the stages of lung cancer is of course more advanced and includes the former dynamics of stage II. It also includes cancer tumors of all sizes, the metastasis ( spread ) of the lung cancer into the main tube of the lung, diaphragm or other nearby areas, but not the trachea. Collapse of the lung is also included in stage IIIa of lung cancer. Stage IIIb will include the spreading of the cancer into the lymph nodes above the clavicle or to the opposite side of the chest. It is also classified as IIIb if it has spread to organs such as the heart, sternum, chest wall, trachea, esophagus, and other important areas.
Stage IV of the stages of lung cancer is truly extensive and involves the metastasis of the cancer into far away places such as the liver, adrenals, the brain, bones and even kidneys. The cancer may also have used the lymphatic system to do this and also invades it as well. Stage IV is the final stage of lung cancer and only chemotherapy will be used to treat those with this level of lung cancer.