Making the Diagnosis
Doctors will remove a small tissue sample (called a biopsy) of the lymph gland and look at it under a microscope. A doctor may take a biopsy of the bone marrow to see if cancer has spread. By analyzing the sample, the size and type of cancerous cells can be determined. This information will tell doctors how far the disease has progressed and whether or not the lymphoma is agressive. This type of analysis is called tumor staging or cancer staging and will help determine the stage of the cancer.
The following stages are used for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma:
Stage I: Cancer is found in only one lymph node area or in only one area or organ outside the lymph nodes.
Stage II: Cancer is found in two or more lymph node areas on the same side of the diaphragm (the thin muscle under the lungs that helps breathing and separates the chest from the abdomen) or cancer is found in only one area or organ outside the lymph nodes and in the lymph nodes around it. Other lymph node areas on the same side of the diaphragm may also have cancer.
Stage III: Cancer is found in lymph node areas on both sides of the diaphragm. The cancer may also have spread to an area or organ near the lymph node areas or to the spleen.
Stage IV: Cancer has spread to more than one organ outside the lymph system or cancer has spread to only one organ outside the lymph system, but lymph nodes far away from that organ also are involved.
Recurrent: Means that the cancer has come back after it has been treated.
Since lymph glands can be found deep inside the body, the pelvis and abdomen are also scanned. This is done with a computerized tomography (CT) scan. The scans indicate how far the disease has spread and how many cancerous cells are in the body. In determining the stage of the cancer, the number of cancerous lymph glands is less important than whether the cancer has spread. Other tests your doctor may perform are blood and urine tests, as well as a physical examination to determine the size and consistency of your lymph nodes.