Brain Cancer Stages

Stage 1 of melanoma is thin and the dermis usually appears scraped. This stage of skin cancer is subdivided into two other categories. These additional categories review the thickness of the tumor. Stage 1a is less than 1.0 mm and has no ulceration. Stage 1b is less than 1.0 mm but has ulceration. It is also thought about to be in stage 1b if it is 1.01 - 2.0 mm even if it does not involve ulceration. In this stage and stage 2 the melanoma has not yet spread to the lymph nodes.

Brain Cancer Stages

Stage 2 is also subdivided into three more categories that signify the thickness and the existence or non-existence of ulceration. The tumor in stage 2a is 1.01 - 2.0 mm with ulceration or 2.01 - 4.0 mm without ulceration. Stage 3b has a tumor thickness of 2.01 with ulceration or a thickness of more than 4.0 without ulceration.

When this type of skin cancer advances to stage 3 a valuable change occurs. At this stage, the melanoma tumor has spread to the lymph nodes. This is a much more serious stage of the disease because when healthy, the lymph nodes fight disease, cancer and some other infections.

Patients with stage 3 of this cancer have melanoma that has spread into lymph nodes near the customary tumor. This stage also involves in-transit metastasis that has skin or connective tissue that is more than 2 centimeters from the customary tumor. However, at this point it has not spread past the regional lymph nodes.

In stage 4, the melanoma has spread to lymph nodes that are a distance from the customary tumor or to internal organs. These organs are most often the lung, liver, brain, bone and then the gastrointestinal tract.

When diagnosed with skin cancer, it is important to consult with your physician concerning the degree or stage of melanoma that you may have. A range of diagnostic techniques will likely be used to conclude the stage of your skin cancer. Most stage 1 and stage 2 melanomas should not cause too much worry because they can most often be cured through surgery. There is minute need to worry about getting later stages of melanoma just because you once suffered through the early stages.

Different doctors may use distinct systems or scales to classify the stages of melanoma. The most ordinarily used are the Tnm staging theory and the Breslow scale. The most important things to remember are that melanomas with 0.76 mm or lower thickness are low risk, 0.76 - 1.5 mm involve medium risk and when the melanoma is more than 1.5 mm in thickness you are at a much higher risk. When you are diagnosed with melanoma it is important that you understand exactly what stages your physician may be referring to and what treatments are ready to you.