The stage of cancer refers to how advanced and widespread it is. A staging system called TNM determines the stage for pleural mesothelioma. TNM stands for Tumor, Node and Metastasis. The rating describes the size of the tumor, whether it has spread to lymph nodes and if it has metastasized.
Doctors assign a stage ranging from 0 to 4. This helps them determine the best treatment and estimate the patient’s prognosis.