Mesothelioma is in incurable disease. Since it cannot be cured, its progress can only be managed in order to give the patient the longest and highest-quality life during the time remaining to them. This process is called staging. Staging is the process of characterizing the patient’s condition based upon the spread and locations of the cancer within their body and designing a treatment based upon this characterization. Mesothelioma is in incurable disease. Since it cannot be cured, its progress can only be managed in order to give the patient the longest and highest-quality life during the time remaining to them. This process is called staging.
Staging is the process of characterizing the patient’s condition based upon the spread and locations of the cancer within their body and designing a treatment based upon this characterization.
Three staging systems exist for the management of pleural mesothelioma: the Butchart System, the TNM System (Tumor-Node-Metastasis), and the Brigham System. Each of these staging systems has its strengths and weaknesses, and a given case may be staged in terms of more than one system.
Using these systems, doctors can determine how much time the patient has remaining, which treatments (if any) will allow him or her to extend that time, and the best methods by which to manage pain and loss of function as the disease progresses.
