Pathologic staging is usually done only when it is needed to help the doctor plan treatment. A number of factors are important in determining the stage of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma as well as the patient's chances of recovering from the disease. These include the patient's age and responsiveness to treatment, the size of the tumor, and the number of places the tumor has spread outside of the lymph nodes. Cancer is found in only one area or organ outside of the lymph nodes and in the lymph nodes around it. Other lymph node areas on the same side of the diaphragm may also have cancer.
Cancer is found in lymph node areas on both sides of the diaphragm.
Cancer cells may or may not be found in the lymph nodes near these organs. Cancer has spread to only one organ outside the lymph system, but lymph nodes far away from that organ are involved. It may come back in the area where it first started or in another part of the body. Bone marrow transplantation is being tested in clinical trials. Radiation therapy given to the neck, chest, and lymph nodes under the arms is called radiation therapy to a mantle field.