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SEER Inquiry System - Report
Produced: 05/28/2026 1:16 AM
Question 20200074
Inquiry Details
References:
Solid Tumor Rules. Head and Neck; December 2020 Update
Question:
Solid Tumor Rules (2018)/Histology--Head & Neck: What specific table(s) in the 2021 Head and Neck Solid Tumor Rules if any, apply to tumors of the lip? See Discussion.
Discussion:
Lip has not been added to any of the site-specific histology tables, nor has any other instruction been provided for coding tumors in this site.
Coding histology for lip primaries is difficult because registrars do not know where to look first. The Solid Tumor Rules indicate one should use the tables first, but then do not inform registrars what table to use for a lip primary (i.e., a specific table, any table, no table).
This question was prompted from preparing SEER*Educate coding exercises. We will use the answer as a reference in the rationales.
Answer:
The tables are based on WHO H&N chapters which do not include lip. There are inherent issues in determining reportability for lip primaries based on site and histology. The decision was made prior to release of the 2018 rules to exclude a histology table for lip. We are consulting both our dermatology and H&N pathology experts to explore adding a lip site-specific table to the rules.
