The TNM reference article from the English Wikipedia on 24-Jul-2004 (provided by Fixed Reference: snapshots of Wikipedia from wikipedia.org)

TNM

TNM

System to categorize all types of cancer regarding:

;T (is, 1-4): size of the tumor ; N (0-3): spreading into lymphatic nodes ; M (0/1): spreading into other organs (metastasis)

There are other criteria which can also be taken into account:

; G (1-4): the Grading (evilness) of the cancer cells ; R (0/1): the completeness of the operation (resection-boundaries free of cancer cells or not) ; p: if the categorisation of the following parameter was achieved by histology (examination by a pathologist) or only clinical examination. ; C (1-4): the certainty (quality) of the last mentioned parameter.

For the T, N and M parameters exist subclassifications for some cancer-types (e.g. T1a, Tis, N1i).

Some examples:

Small, benign cancer, no metastasis, no spreading to lymphatic nodes, cancer completely removed, resection material seen by pathologist:

- pT1C4 pN0C4 M0 R0C4 G1

Big, evil cancer, spreading to lymphatic nodes and other organs, not completely removed, seen by pathologist:

- pT4C4 pN2C4 M1 R1 G3

External links:
TNM Cancer Staging System Database

This is the "TNM" reference article from the English Wikipedia. All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License. See also our Disclaimer.