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Know About Prostate Cancer Staging

By Olive Pate


Cancer has become a serious health issue today. Prostate cancer staging is a process that physicians use to describe the location of the cancer, the extent to which it has spread and the probability of it affecting other parts of the body beyond the prostate gland. They could also determine if it could be cured with local therapies.

The cancer staging process implicates the physician to partake in various tests that should determine the cancer stage.The staging process takes a while for the patient to undergo the tests. The doctors have the responsibility to examine and evaluate the test results to discover the extent at which the tumor has spread and the affected organs. By studying it, it makes it easier for the doctors to treat it and determine the best form of treatment in this way predict if there are any chances of recovering from it.

The tumor spreads in stages. The first stage is mostly comprised of series of undetected tumor. It can not be felt or seen on any imaging tests. It is found on the gland only and is made up of cells that are deceivingly healthy and have a slow but steady growth. They can not be detected easily and thus hard to treat at this stage.

On the second stage, the tumor is too small to be figured on any tests. It is described as slightly larger lump that is felt around the gland. In this second stage, the tumor is still limited to the gland. The cells are always abnormal and grow steadily which increases the risk of the tumor spreading to other parts of the body.

On the third stage the cancerous cells start circulating to other organs both around and past the gland. This adversely affects the seminal vesicles in some cases. This stage is critical as it affects the pro static capsule which causes the lump to be felt on the glands surface.

The immediate fourth stage is described by any tumor that has already spread to other parts of the body and invaded all the nearby organs, such as the rectum, bladder, bone, lungs, lymph nodes or liver.

During the recovery process there are two types of medical stages of the cancer recovery procedure. The clinical stage which is based on the previous test results. Some of the tests include X-rays, bone scans and also MRI scans. Even though, they may not always be necessary. They come recommended depending on the size of the cancerous growth and the stage of the tumor.

The pathologic stage on the basis of provided information during the surgery which mostly involves the removal of the prostate and some lymph nodes or test results of the already removed prostate.

The cancerous growth may appear again after treatment. This is the recurrent prostate cancer. It may appear in the gland or other body organs. In case this takes place the tumor may need to be staged once again to determine the form of treatment to be provided early and if it could be eliminated through these treatments.




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