Stage 3 anal cancer
Stage 3 anal cancer can be different sizes. It's spread to nearby tissue or lymph nodes. It hasn't spread to distant body parts.
Stage 3 anal cancer is divided into 3 groups - 3A, 3B and 3C.
Stage 3A
Stage 3A means the cancer is no bigger than 5cm.
It has spread to nearby lymph nodes in the rectum, pelvis or the groin. But it hasn't spread to other parts of the body.
Stage 3B
Stage 3B means the cancer is any size and is growing into the surrounding organs, such as the bladder, the tube that carries urine from the bladder out of your body (the urethra) or the vagina.
The cancer hasn't spread to the lymph nodes or other parts of the body.
Stage 3C
Stage 3C cancer has spread to nearby lymph nodes but not to other parts of the body. It also means one of the following:
- stage 3C1 - the cancer is larger than 5cm
- stage 3C2 - the cancer is any size and has grown into surrounding organs, such as the urethra, vagina or bladder
TNM staging
Doctors also use another staging system for anal cancer called the TNM staging system. It stands for tumour, node and metastasis:
T describes the size of the tumour.
N describes whether the cancer has spread to the lymph nodes.
M describes whether the cancer has spread to a different part of the body.
In the TNM staging system, stage 3A anal cancer is the same as:
- T1, N1, M0
- T2, N1, M0
In the TNM staging system, stage 3B anal cancer is the same as:
- T4, N0, M0
In the TNM staging system, stage 3C anal cancer is the same as:
- T3, N1, M0
- T4, N1, M0
Treatment for stage 3 anal cancer
The stage of your cancer helps your doctor to decide which treatment you need. Treatment also depends on:
- your type of cancer (the type of cells the cancer started in)
- where the cancer is
- other health conditions
Chemoradiotherapy
The main treatment for stage 3 anal cancer is chemoradiotherapy. This means you have chemotherapy and radiotherapy together.
You might have surgery if the cancer hasn't gone completely after chemoradiotherapy or if it comes back.
