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The New Lung Cancer TNM Classification: Review and Clinical Implications

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Abstract

Lung cancer remains the number one cause of cancer-related mortality in the Western world. Its staging is the cornerstone for both prognosis and treatment guidance. A unified and universally accepted staging system is also essential to standardize nomenclature for international comparisons of clinical trials. The UICC 7th edition of the TNM classification system is undoubtedly a major improvement in our scientific basis for the staging of lung cancer, supported by a large international database and subject to thorough internal and external validation process. Some limitations are deeply related to the retrospective nature of the data collection and will hopefully be overcome with the new prospective data set developed by the IASLC to inform changes to the eighth TNM. In this chapter, we will review the modifications to the T, N, and M descriptors, as well as the group stages, and we will discuss its clinical implications, strengths, and limitations.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Michael E. Debakey VA Medical Center, 2002 Holcombe Blvd., Pulmonary Section 111i, Houston, TX, 77030, USA

    Roberto F. Casal M.D.

  2. Department of Pulmonary Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA

    Rodolfo C. Morice M.D.

Authors
  1. Roberto F. Casal M.D.
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  2. Rodolfo C. Morice M.D.
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Roberto F. Casal M.D. .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, Department of Pulmonary Medicine, Bellvitge University Hospital, Barcelona, 08907, Spain

    Jose Pablo Díaz-Jimenez

  2. Clinica Y Maternidad Colon, Pulmonary Department, Mar Del Plata, Buenos Aires, 7600, Argentina

    Alicia N. Rodriguez

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Casal, R.F., Morice, R.C. (2013). The New Lung Cancer TNM Classification: Review and Clinical Implications. In: Díaz-Jimenez, J., Rodriguez, A. (eds) Interventions in Pulmonary Medicine. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6009-1_19

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6009-1_19

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4614-6008-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4614-6009-1

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

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