Cancer Staging

Question 1

How cancer develops

Answer 1

cells grow and divide abnormally

Question 2

tumor

Answer 2

extra cells that form an aggregate or mass

Question 3

benign tumor

Answer 3

non-cancerous tumor that does not spread or threaten the life of the patient, tend to be easily removed

Question 4

malignant

Answer 4

cancerous tumor

Question 5

characteristics of a malignant tumor

Answer 5

abnormal cells that divide without control or order
invade and destroy surrounding tissue
large irregular nuclei, disorganized tissue, and a poorly defined boundary

Question 6

process of metastasis

Answer 6

when malignant cells break off from the original tumor and travel through the blood stream or lymphatics to form new tumors in other areas of the body

Question 7

some causes of cancer

Answer 7

changes in the genes that control growth and death of cells
tobacco, diet, UV radiation, carcinogens
HPV, Hep B, Hep C, HIV

Question 8

how to reduce risk of cancer

Answer 8

don’t use tobacco
eat fruits, vegetables, and whole grains
avoid sun exposure

Question 9

cancer screening procedures

Answer 9

sigmoidoscopy, pap test, mammograph

Question 10

possible symptoms of cancer

Answer 10

thickenings or lumps
change in a mole or wart
change in bowel or bladder
difficulty swallowing
weight changes
unusual bleeding

Question 11

purpose and advantage of a tissue biopsy

Answer 11

to determine whether cancerous cells are present

Question 12

ways to deal with diagnosed cancer

Answer 12

surgery, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, hormone therapy, biological/immuno therapy

Question 13

process of radiation

Answer 13

external or internal, the tumor is exposed to either high energy rays or radioactive substances

Question 14

chemotherapy

Answer 14

use of drugs to kill cancer cells

Question 15

purpose of hormone therapy

Answer 15

prevents hormonally dependent cancers from obtaining the hormones they need to grow

Question 16

biological therapy

Answer 16

uses the body’s immune system to fight cancer directly or indirectly

Question 17

examples of biological therapy

Answer 17

monoclonal antibodies
interferon
interlukin-2
colony-stimulating factors

Question 18

how is tumor grade determined?

Answer 18

suspected malignancy is biopsied, pathologist determines the grade based on morphology

size and shape of the nucleus
volume of nucleus to cytoplasm ratio
relative number of dividing cells (mitotic index)
organization of the tissue
boundary of the tumor
how well differentiated the cells appear compared to normal cells

Question 19

what is the purpose of tumor grading?

Answer 19

to classify cancer based on how abnormal the cells look and determine how quickly the tumor is likely to grow and spread

Question 20

what are the 4 tumor grades?

Answer 20

Grade I, II, II, IV

Question 21

why tumor grade is important to a patent’s prognosis (future)

Answer 21

lower grades usually have a better prognosis because they are less aggressive

Question 22

prognosis

Answer 22

the likely outcome or course of a disease, whether the cancer is liekly to recur

Question 23

staging

Answer 23

the extent or severity of a cancer

Question 24

elements of staging

Answer 24

location of the primary tumor
size and number of tumors
lymph node involvement
cell type and tumor grade (how closely the cells resemble normal tissue)
presence or absence of metastasis

Question 25

common system used to stage cancer

Answer 25

the TNM system

Question 26

what do T, N, and M stand for?

Answer 26

T is extent of the tumor
N is the extent of spread to the lymph nodes
M is the presence of metastasis
number following the letter indicates size and extent of each characteristic

Question 27

categories of cancer

Answer 27

In situ
Regional
Distant
Unknown

Question 28

tests and procedures to stage a cancer

Answer 28

depends on the type of cancer
physical exam
imaging studies: X-rays, CT, MRI, PET
Lab tests: blood, urine, tissue
Pathology reports
Surgical reports

Question 29

what is included on a pathology report?

Answer 29

size of the tumor
growth of the tumor into other tissues and organs
the type of cancer cells
grade of the tumor

Question 30

Distant

Answer 30

has spread from the primary site to distant organs or distant lymph nodes

Question 31

Unknown

Answer 31

cases in which there is not enough information to indicate a stage