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For tumors diagnosed prior to 2007:

Unless it is stated to be a RECURRENT or METASTATIC melanoma, record each melanoma as a separate primary when:

1. The occurrences are more than two months apart.

2. The fourth digit of the ICD-O topography code for skin [C44._] is different .

3. The first three digits of ICD-O-3 morphology code are different.

4. An in situ melanoma is followed by an invasive melanoma.

For tumors diagnosed 2007 or later, refer to the MP/H rules. If there are still questions about how this type of tumor should be coded, submit a new question to SINQ and include the difficulties you are encountering in applying the MP/H rules.

For tumors diagnosed prior to 2007:

Code the Histology field to 8490/3 [Signet ring cell adenocarcinoma]. Code the specific subtype when the diagnosis says "generic carcinoma, something type." Neuroendocrine differentiation was suspected, but not supported by the IHC stains. A combination code is not appropriate for this example.

For tumors diagnosed 2007 or later, refer to the MP/H rules. If there are still questions about how this type of tumor should be coded, submit a new question to SINQ and include the difficulties you are encountering in applying the MP/H rules.

For cases diagnosed prior to 1/1/2010:Do not add these synonyms to ICD-O-3. The Abstracting and Coding Guide for the Hematopoietic Diseases lists synonyms for the preferred terms to assist in the classification of these other terms. In the absence of a specific code for the synonym, code to the preferred term. For casefinding, these terms would be grouped in a broader category of hematologic diseases under an ICD-9-CM or ICD-10 code and, therefore, will be identified during casefinding procedures using the disease index.

For cases diagnosed 2010 forward, refer to the Hematopoietic and Lymphoid Neoplasm Case Reportability and Coding Manual and the Hematopoietic Database (Hematopoietic DB) provided by SEER on its website to research your question. If those resources do not adequately address your issue, submit a new question to SINQ.

For tumors diagnosed prior to 2007:

No. There is no exception for vulva or vagina.

For tumors diagnosed 2007 or later, refer to the MP/H rules. If there are still questions about how this type of tumor should be coded, submit a new question to SINQ and include the difficulties you are encountering in applying the MP/H rules.

For cases diagnosed 1998-2003:

Bilateral involvement of an extralymphatic paired organ is coded as involvement of a single extralymphatic organ or site for lymphomas. The EOD extension code would be at least 11 (Stage IE). Staging lymphomas of any site depends on whether one or more lymph node regions and/or extralymphatic organs are involved, and whether sites on one or both sides of the diaphragm are involved.

For cases diagnosed 1998-2003:

For testis cases only, "metastasis in lymph nodes" is measured by the size of the lymph node or the lymph node mass. It is acceptable to code the size of this metastasis from a CT scan or other imaging when a pathology specimen is not available for testicular primaries.

For cases diagnosed 1998-2003:

For Primary Site and EOD, CT information has higher priority than laryngoscopy. The CT scan gives a better picture of the involvement of the deeper tissues. A laryngoscopy falls into the "physical exam" category more than the "operative" category. The laryngoscopy report is not an "operative" report like those generated from a surgical procedure.

For tumors diagnosed prior to 2007:

Report this case as two primaries, left and right kidneys. According to our pathologist consultant, "The description sounds like bilateral multiple primaries. Multicentricity in the same kidney occurs in about 4% of all cases, and bilaterality in 0.5 to 3% (Atlas of Tumor Pathology, Tumors of the Kidney, Bladder, and Related Urinary Structures)."

For tumors diagnosed 2007 or later, refer to the MP/H rules. If there are still questions about how this type of tumor should be coded, submit a new question to SINQ and include the difficulties you are encountering in applying the MP/H rules.

For cases diagnosed 1998-2002:

Code the Reason for No Cancer-Directed Surgery field to 1 [Cancer-directed surgery was not recommended] for patients who present with either a primary site or histology for which surgery is not a standard treatment. Also use code 1 for those patients who present with distant disease for a primary site that is typically treated surgically. Patients with distant metastasis typically do not have surgery performed as part of first course of treatment.

Code 2 [Contraindicated due to other conditions] is used when surgery would normally be recommended for the site (given the current stage of the tumor) but other medical conditions pose too much of a risk for the patient to undergo surgery.

For cases diagnosed 1998-2003:

If this ulcerated mass is pathologically confirmed to be malignant, code the EOD-Size of Primary Tumor field to 020 [2.0 cm] based on the size of this mass in the absence of a more precise tumor size description.