Determination of the extent of cancer
Once the diagnosis of mesothelioma is confirm, the doctor further orders for additional tests to check the spread of cancer to other areas in your body or the lymph nodes. The doctor is the one who determines which test is appropriate for a patient because not every patient requires every screening test. The doctor, after collecting the information from the screening tests, assigns the type and stage of the mesothelioma cancer for every patient. There are four stages of mesothelioma cancer, and it represents in the roman numerals. The stage one mesothelioma indicates that the cancer cells are localizing in the lungs only while stage four mesothelioma means that it is spreading to other body parts. The staging system for mesothelioma is evolving with the progression in new studies and improves the treatment plans for the patient. Some of the other screening tests include:
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
CT scans of the abdomen and the chest
Positron emission technologies (PET) scan