An official website of the United States government
Staging
Criteria for TNM Clinical Staging:
Physical examination and results of radical orchiectomy.
Criteria for TNM Pathologic Staging:
Extent of disease by histologic evaluation of radical orchiectomy specimen.
Note: evaluation of specimens from a defined node bearing area (such as retroperitoneal or periaortic) must be used. In other words, there must be a lymph node dissection for Pathologic Staging.
In the 6th edition of the AJCC staging manual, an additional descriptor, S (serum tumor markers) is required for stage grouping.
| Tis | Intratubular |
|---|---|
| pT1 | Testis and epididymis, no vascular or lymphatic invasion |
| pT2 | Testis and epididymis with vascular or lymphatic invasion, tunica vaginalis |
| pT3 | Spermatic cord |
| pT4 | Scrotum |
| N1 | Nodal mass < 2 cm |
| N2 | Nodal mass >2 but not more than 5 cm |
| N3 | Any nodal mass > 5 cm |
| M1a | Non-regional lymph node or pulmonary metastasis |
| M1b | Distant metastasis other than to non-regional lymph nodes and lungs. |
| S1 | LDH < 1.5 times normal AND hCG < 5,000 AND AFP < 1,000 |
| S2 | LDH 1.5-10 times normal OR hCG 5,000-50,000 OR AFP 1,000-10,000 |
| S3 | LDH > 10 times normal OR hCG > 50,000 OR AFP > 10,000 |
Collaborative Stage Elements
For more details on Collaborative Stage, see the Intro to Collaborative Staging module.