M. D. Anderson Cancer Center: Melanoma
Posted on 6th February, 2012 by Chaz
A discussion of the topic from this Houston, Texas institution.
Stage is a way to describe the severity of a cancer by incorporating information about its location, size, whether it has spread to nearby lymph nodes and whether it has metastasized to other parts of the body. In the case of melanoma, stages I and II are based mainly on the thickness of the cancer and how many layers of skin it has invaded. Stages III and IV are based on how far the melanoma has spread from the skin. Staging is based on a combination of physical examination, biopsy, and