Melanoma Staging
Melanoma Patient Network Europe
Knowledge
in
d o tr
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Knowledge is protection. This guide Was written by Bettina Ryll, MD/ PhD, and MPNE founder. copyright MPNEsupport, January 2018
MPNE
We are a network of Melanoma patients, family members and patient advocates. We are determined to improve the situation of Melanoma patients in Europe. We bridge language and cultural barriers and communicate and collaborate across Europe. We are a network of volunteers working together on the basis of shared principles.
What is Staging?
Staging describes the ‘stage’ of a
disease, so how far the Melanoma has spread in the body.
Why is Staging important?
The disease stage defines 1- the prognosis
Prognosis How the disease will develop.
2- treatment options. Today, we are using the Prognostic stage group system by the AJCC, the American Joint Committee on Cancer.
How many stages are there in Melanoma according to the AJCC*? *AJCC, the American Joint Committee on Cancer
4 The higher the number, the more the disease has spread.
What are the 4 stages?
Melanoma
Stages overview
Stage 1: the tumour is local and small (<1mm) Stage 2: the tumour is local and large (>1mm) Stage 3: the tumour has spread to the regional lymph nodes Stage 4: the tumour has spread to other distant regions of the body
Is this system updated regularly?
Yes Since
January 2018, we are using the 8th AJCC edition. .
st 1
How does Staging work?
pTNM How far a Melanoma has exactly spread anatomically is described as ‘TNM’ which stands for: Ø the
Tumour (thickness and whether the surface is broken (ulceration))
Ø the Lymph Ø distant
Nodes
that have been affected
Metastasis (the cancer has spread to another part of the body)
This is called the TNM classification*. *pTNM means: reviewed by a pathologist
What does pTNM have to do with the 4 AJCC Stages?
The TNM value (how far has the Melanoma exactly spread?) is part of the AJCC staging system which also includes other prognostic factors. For Melanoma, the AJCC staging also includes the LDH* level. *LDH is an enzyme and stands for lactate dehydrogenase. It has been shown that Melanoma patients with high LDH tend to do worse than patients with normal LDH.
Every Melanoma patient should know their pTNM classification and AJCC stage.
AJCC
th 8
https://acsjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.3322/caac.21409
Anything else I need to know?
Yes Melanoma treatment has improved dramatically in .
the last 10 years. The data on prognosis in AJCC8th is older than that, so they should be considered worst case with today’s patients doing better.
where to find us
www.melanomapatientnetworkeu.org
Knowledge
Melanoma Patient Network Europe