Stages of Melanoma

There are 4 stages of Melanoma.

Stage 0 (Melanoma in situ): Cancer is confined to the top layer of the skin.

• No chance of spread
• Treated with surgery
• May be treated after surgery with a cream applied to the skin
• May be treated with the cream alone, if surgery is not an option

Stage I: Cancer has spread deeper into the skin (equal to or greater than 1 mm, stage IA or equal to or greater than 2 mmm stage IB), but has not spread to lymph nodes or other parts of the body. These tumors are graded according to their thickness to guide treatment options.

Stage II: Cancer has thickness greater than 2 millimeters.

•  Divided into IIA, IIB, IIC stages according to thickness (greater than 2 or less than 4 mm) and whether the tumor shows ulceration under the microscope.

Stage III: Cancer has spread to nearby lymph nodes, but not to distant lymph nodes or organs.

Stage IV: Cancer has spread to distant lymph nodes and other organs.