Sarcoma

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Stages

Stage describes how much cancer there is and how far it has spread. For soft tissue sarcoma, stages generally range from 1 to 4. A lower stage generally means the cancer is more limited. A higher stage means it is more advanced.

Healthcare professionals determine the stage using several pieces of information, commonly summarized as TNM plus grade. TNM stands for:

  • T: The size of the primary tumor.
  • N: Whether the cancer has spread to nearby lymph nodes.
  • M: Whether the cancer has spread to distant parts of the body.

Staging isn't identical for every sarcoma. The tumor's location and type matter, and bone sarcomas have their own staging considerations. So a person's sarcoma can't necessarily be assigned a stage from tumor size alone.

Both tumor grade and stage help the care team understand the likely outcome of your condition, called prognosis, and determine the most appropriate treatment.

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Diagnóstico & tratamiento
July 02, 2025

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  1. Ferri FF. Sarcoma. In: Ferri's Clinical Advisor 2025. Elsevier; 2025. https://www.clinicalkey.com. Accessed Aug. 20, 2024.
  2. Niederhuber JE, et al., eds. Sarcomas of soft tissue. In: Abeloff's Clinical Oncology. 6th ed. Elsevier; 2020. https://www.clinicalkey.com. Accessed Aug. 20, 2024.
  3. Soft tissue sarcoma. National Comprehensive Cancer Network. https://www.nccn.org/guidelines/guidelines-detail?category=1&id=1464. June 25, 2024.
  4. Bone cancer. National Comprehensive Cancer Network. https://www.nccn.org/guidelines/guidelines-detail?category=1&id=1418. Accessed June 25, 2024.
  5. Salerno KE, et al. Radiation therapy for treatment of soft tissue sarcoma in adults: Executive summary of an ASTRO clinical practice guideline. Practical Radiation Oncology. 2021; doi:10.1016/j.prro.2021.04.005.

Sarcoma