Diagnostic size cutoffs
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Diagnostic size cutoffs are cutoffs which (in part) define a diagnosis and are seen in a number of places in pathology. They are usually somewhat arbitrary by their nature; however, they often make sense from a biologic big picture/management perspective. It doesn't make sense to treat ADH and low-grade DCIS the same, as their behaviour is different.
In pathology, size matters. With other things equal, in the context of how tumours are currently evaluated, big tumours do worse than small tumours.
| Smaller lesion (precursor) | Cutoff value | Larger lesion (cancer) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Papillary adenoma of the kidney | <=0.5 cm | Papillary renal cell carcinoma | - |
| Atypical alveolar hyperplasia | <5 mm[1] | Adenocarcinoma in situ of the lung | - |
| Atypical ductal hyperplasia | <2mm | Low-grade ductal carcinoma in situ | Different criterion for lesions in an intraductal papilloma |
| Atypical ductal hyperplasia in an intraductal papilloma | <3mm | Low-grade ductal carcinoma in situ in an intraductal papilloma | Different criterion for lesions not in an intraductal papilloma |
| Pulmonary carcinoid tumourlet | <= 4 mm[2] | Typical carcinoid lung tumour | Typical carcinoid lung tumour not a cancer |
See also
References
- ↑ Humphrey, Peter A; Dehner, Louis P; Pfeifer, John D (2008). The Washington Manual of Surgical Pathology (1st ed.). Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. pp. 114. ISBN 978-0781765275.
- ↑ URL: http://pathhsw5m54.ucsf.edu/case7/image75.html. Accessed on: 23 January 2012.