Mesothelioma stages and staging system : Part – 2

An important aspect is that as pleural mesothelioma is the most common among all types of cancer and occurs frequently, these staging systems are devised to mark its stages.

The three established and recognized clinical staging systems for mesothelioma are:

The Butchart System
TNM Staging
The Brigham System

The Butchart Staging System:

Butchart is the oldest system and is still the most commonly used. Its four stages are based on the extent of primary tumor mass.

Stage	Location
I	Tumor confined to the ipsilateral pleura, lung, or pericardium
II	Tumor invading the chest wall or mediastinal structures or metastases to thoracic lymph nodes
III	Tumor penetrating the diaphragm to involve the peritoneum or metastases to extrathoracic lymph nodes
IV	Distant blood-borne metastases