ABSTRACT
Diagnosis and staging are vital for determining the optimum management of a patient with cancer. Staging is essential not only for treating a specific patient but also to communicate treatment data and outcomes with other centres around the world. Diagnosis includes securing a tissue diagnosis, performing cytology of fluids and tissue scrapings, fine-needle aspiration, and several categories of biposies: needle, incision, and excision. Once the diagnosis has been confirmed, the stage of the cancer, which defines the size and extent of the tumour, must be ascertained. Staging has several purposes including defining the locoregional and distant extent of disease and helping to determine the optimum treatment. A thorough and systematic history can reveal symptoms that may suggest the need for specific staging investigations or a certain disease stage. Additionally, a knowledge of the patterns of spread of tumours will aid the selection of staging investigations.
