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Stages of Salivary Gland Cancer
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After salivary gland cancer has been diagnosed, tests are done to find out
if cancer cells have spread within the salivary gland or to other parts of the body.
The process used to find out if cancer has spread within the salivary glands or to other parts of
the body is called staging. The
information gathered from the staging process determines the stage of the disease. It is
important to know the stage in order to plan treatment. The following
procedures may be used in the staging process:
- MRI (magnetic resonance imaging): A procedure that uses a magnet, radio waves, and a computer to make a series of detailed pictures of areas inside the body. This procedure is also called nuclear magnetic resonance imaging (NMRI).
- CT scan (CAT
scan): A procedure that makes a series of detailed pictures of areas inside the body, taken from different angles. The pictures are made by a computer
linked to an x-ray machine. A dye may be injected into a vein or swallowed to help the organs or tissues show up more clearly. This
procedure is also called computed tomography, computerized tomography, or
computerized axial tomography.
There are three ways that cancer spreads in the body.
The three ways that cancer spreads in the body are:
- Through tissue. Cancer invades the surrounding normal tissue.
- Through the lymph system. Cancer invades the lymph system and travels through the lymph vessels to other places in the body.
- Through the blood. Cancer invades the veins and capillaries and travels through the blood to other places in the body.
When cancer cells break away from the primary (original) tumor and travel through the lymph or blood to other places in the body, another (secondary) tumor may form. This process is called metastasis. The secondary (metastatic) tumor is the same type of cancer as the primary tumor. For example, if breast cancer spreads to the bones, the cancer cells in the bones are actually breast cancer cells. The disease is metastatic breast cancer, not bone cancer.
The following stages are used for major salivary gland cancers:
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| Pea, peanut, walnut, and lime show tumor sizes. |
Stage I
In stage I, the tumor is in the salivary gland only and is 2 centimeters or smaller.
Stage II
In stage II,
the tumor is in the salivary gland only and is larger than 2 centimeters but not larger than 4 centimeters.
Stage III
In stage III, one of the following is true:
- The tumor is not larger than 4 centimeters and has spread to a single lymph node on the same side as the tumor and the lymph node is 3 centimeters or smaller.
- The tumor is larger than 4 centimeters and/or has spread to soft tissue around the affected gland. Cancer may have spread to a single lymph node on the same side as the tumor and the lymph node is 3 centimeters or smaller.
Stage IV
Stage IV is divided into stages IVA, IVB, and IVC as follows:
- Stage IVA:
- The tumor may be any size and may have spread to soft tissue around the affected gland. Cancer has spread to one or more lymph nodes on either or both sides of the body and the lymph nodes are not larger than 6 centimeters; or
- Cancer has spread to the skin, jawbone, ear canal, and/or facial nerve, and may have spread to one or more lymph nodes on either or both sides of the body. The lymph nodes are not larger than 6 centimeters.
- Stage IVB:
- The tumor may be any size and may have spread to soft tissue around the affected gland. Cancer has spread to a lymph node larger than 6 centimeters; or
- Cancer has spread to the base of the skull and/or the carotid artery, and may have spread to one or more lymph nodes of any size on either or both sides of the body.
- Stage IVC:
- The tumor may be any size and may have spread to soft tissue around the affected gland, to the skin, jawbone, ear canal, facial nerve, base of the skull, or carotid artery, or to one or more lymph nodes on either or both sides of the body. Cancer has spread to distant parts of the body.
Salivary gland cancers are also grouped by grade.
The grade of a tumor tells how fast the cancer cells are growing, based on how the cells look under a microscope. Low-grade cancers grow more slowly than high- grade cancers.
Minor salivary gland cancers are staged according to where they were first found in the body.
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