What term refers to classifying cancer based on the extent of disease including spread to distant sites?

• A. Tumor Grading
• B. Lymph Node Mapping
• C. Tumor Staging
• D. Metastasis Count

Answer: (C)

Staging cancer describes how far the disease has advanced, including whether it has spread to distant sites. Clinically, this uses the TNM system—T for the size or extent of the primary tumor, N for lymph node involvement, and M for distant metastasis. The combined stage (often I to IV) guides prognosis and treatment decisions.

In contrast, tumor grading looks at how abnormal the cancer cells appear under a microscope to gauge aggressiveness, not the spread. Lymph Node Mapping focuses specifically on whether cancer has reached nearby lymph nodes, and Metastasis Count isn’t a standard way to classify cancer on its own. The established term that captures both local extent and distant spread is tumor staging.