# TNM staging

Source: https://onco.cc/terms/tnm-staging/  
OnCo record `tnm-staging` (Term). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

TNM staging is the universal system describing tumour size (T), lymph node spread (N), and distant metastasis (M).

## Summary

TNM staging is the universal system for describing a cancer by tumour size and extent (T), lymph node spread (N) and distant metastasis (M), with aliases such as T stage, N stage, pT2 and clinical stage. The current scheme is the AJCC/UICC 8th edition, and it increasingly incorporates biomarkers, so that breast prognostic stage includes grade, ER, PR and HER2 status. The resulting stage I to IV groups drive treatment intent. The term connects to the related terms Stage, Primary tumour, Lymph node, Lymph node status, Carcinoma in situ (CIS), Breslow thickness and Disease-specific staging and risk systems, and it is referenced by the Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma entry, the Union for International Cancer Control and an idea for a live national dashboard of stage at diagnosis.

## Fields

- Kind: Term
- Last checked: 2026-09-04
- Also known as: TNM; T stage; N stage; T1a; T1b; T1c; pT2; T1-2; T3-4; N2-3; M0 disease; clinical stage

## Sources

- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TNM_staging_system
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TNM_staging_system

## Connected records

- cancers: [Adenoma-like adenocarcinoma of the colon and rectum](https://onco.cc/cancers/colorectal-adenoma-like-adenocarcinoma/), [Breast cancer (all types)](https://onco.cc/cancers/breast-cancer/), [Colorectal cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/colorectal/), [Gallbladder cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/gallbladder/), [Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/head-and-neck/), [Lung cancer (all types)](https://onco.cc/cancers/lung-cancer/), [Micropapillary adenocarcinoma of the colon and rectum](https://onco.cc/cancers/colorectal-micropapillary-carcinoma/), [Non-small-cell lung cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/nsclc/), [Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/pancreatic/), [Prostate cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/prostate/), [Resectable stage I to III non-small-cell lung cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/resectable-nsclc/), [Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC)](https://onco.cc/cancers/tnbc/), [Unresectable stage III non-small-cell lung cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/stage-iii-unresectable-nsclc/)
- terms: [AJCC 8th edition prognostic stage for breast cancer](https://onco.cc/terms/ajcc-prognostic-stage-breast/), [AJCC stage (TNM staging manual)](https://onco.cc/terms/ajcc-stage/), [Breslow thickness](https://onco.cc/terms/breslow-thickness/), [Cambridge Prognostic Group (CPG 1 to 5)](https://onco.cc/terms/cambridge-prognostic-group/), [Carcinoma in situ (CIS)](https://onco.cc/terms/carcinoma-in-situ/), [Circumferential resection margin (rectal cancer)](https://onco.cc/terms/circumferential-resection-margin/), [Disease-specific staging and risk systems (FIGO, Ann Arbor, IPI, R-ISS, ELN, IMDC)](https://onco.cc/terms/staging-systems/), [Extraprostatic extension and seminal vesicle invasion](https://onco.cc/terms/extraprostatic-extension/), [Grade versus stage](https://onco.cc/terms/grade-vs-stage/), [How skin carcinoma is staged in Britain: UICC TNM, and why it is not the American system](https://onco.cc/terms/tnm-skin-carcinoma/), [ICD-O-3 (International Classification of Diseases for Oncology)](https://onco.cc/terms/icd-o-3/), [Immunoscore](https://onco.cc/terms/immunoscore/), [Locally advanced and locoregional disease](https://onco.cc/terms/locally-advanced/), [Lymph node](https://onco.cc/terms/lymph-node/), [Lymph node status (node-positive / node-negative)](https://onco.cc/terms/lymph-node-status/), [Mediastinal lymph node stations](https://onco.cc/terms/mediastinal-lymph-node-stations/), [Obstruction and T4 disease in bowel cancer](https://onco.cc/terms/obstructing-colorectal-cancer/), [Pancreas protocol CT (pancreatic protocol CT, dual-phase thin-slice CT with structured reporting)](https://onco.cc/terms/pancreas-protocol-ct/), [Peritoneal cancer index](https://onco.cc/terms/peritoneal-carcinomatosis-index/), [Primary tumour](https://onco.cc/terms/primary-tumour/), [R0 and R1 margins in pancreatic cancer: the 1 mm rule and standardised specimen reporting](https://onco.cc/terms/r0-r1-margin-pancreatic/), [Stage](https://onco.cc/terms/cancer-stage/), [T2a versus T2b gallbladder cancer (peritoneal side versus hepatic side)](https://onco.cc/terms/t2a-versus-t2b/), [The Brigham and Women's Hospital staging system, and why squamous cell carcinoma has two](https://onco.cc/terms/bwh-staging-cscc/), [TNM 9: what changed in lung cancer staging](https://onco.cc/terms/tnm-9-lung-cancer/), [TNM staging for prostate cancer, and what changed in the 9th edition](https://onco.cc/terms/tnm-prostate-cancer/), [Tumour board (multidisciplinary team meeting)](https://onco.cc/terms/tumour-board/), [Which staging edition a breast report uses: UICC TNM 8, TNM 9 and the AJCC prognostic stage](https://onco.cc/terms/tnm-breast-cancer-editions/)
- key papers: [8th Edition of the AJCC Cancer Staging Manual: Pancreas and Hepatobiliary Cancers](https://onco.cc/key-papers/paper-chun-ajcc-8th-edition-hepatobiliary-aso-2018/), [Carcinoma of the gallbladder: staging, treatment, and prognosis](https://onco.cc/key-papers/paper-nevin-gallbladder-carcinoma-staging-cancer-1976/), [Optimal surgical treatment in patients with T1b gallbladder cancer: An international multicenter study](https://onco.cc/key-papers/paper-kim-t1b-gallbladder-cancer-international-jhbps-2018/), [Tumor location is a strong predictor of tumor progression and survival in T2 gallbladder cancer: an international multicenter study](https://onco.cc/key-papers/paper-shindoh-t2-gallbladder-cancer-tumour-location-ann-surg-2015/), [Validation of the 8th Edition American Joint Commission on Cancer (AJCC) Gallbladder Cancer Staging System: Prognostic Discrimination and Identification of Key Predictive Factors](https://onco.cc/key-papers/paper-giannis-ajcc8-gallbladder-staging-validation-cancers-2021/)
- roadmaps: [Gallbladder cancer roadmap: from a chance finding at gallstone surgery to a disease with its own trials](https://onco.cc/roadmaps/gallbladder-cancer-roadmap/)
- ideas: [A live national dashboard of stage at diagnosis as the scorecard for early detection](https://onco.cc/ideas/idea-prev-live-stage-dashboard/), [Test whether T1b gallbladder cancer needs the second operation at all](https://onco.cc/ideas/idea-gbc-t1b-simple-cholecystectomy-prospective-study/)
- institutions: [International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer](https://onco.cc/institutions/iaslc/), [Union for International Cancer Control](https://onco.cc/institutions/uicc/)
- pathways: [Basement membrane & tissue barriers](https://onco.cc/pathways/basement-membrane-tissue-barriers/), [Invasion: proteases, adhesion & the invasive front](https://onco.cc/pathways/invasion-ecm-degradation/)

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