Surgery of Primary Site--Ovary: What code is used to represent this field when a patient has a history of a previous organ removal and has additional surgery/organ removal for a present cancer (e.g., History of a 1984 hysterectomy and in 2003 has ovarian primary treated with BSO)?
For cases diagnosed 1/1/2003 and after: Code the Surgery of Primary Site field to 52 [Bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy WITH hysterectomy].
EOD-Extension--Cervix: Should this field be coded to 11 [minimal microscopic stromal invasion] or 12 [microinvasion] when there is only a statement of "microinvasion" but no measurements describing the level of involvement given?
For cases diagnosed 1998-2003:
Code the EOD-Extension field to 12 [microinvasion] when there are no depth of invasion measurements given.
Code the EOD-Extension field to 11 [minimal microscopic stromal invasion] when there is a statement of "minimal STROMAL invasion."
EOD-Size of Primary Tumor--Breast: If the patient has inflammatory carcinoma of the breast, is the tumor size coded as 998 even though we have a tumor size?
For cases diagnosed 1998-2003:
Code the EOD-Size of Primary tumor field to 998 [Diffuse; widespread; 3/4 or more of breast; inflammatory carcinoma] for all inflammatory breast carcinomas.
These cases have a worse prognosis because of the dermal lymphatic invasion. Half of the inflammatory breast carcinomas will have no palpable mass.
Other Therapy: What code is used to represent "gene" therapy? See discussion.
The following form of gene therapy has been described as treatment for malignant brain tumors.
Patients undergo surgery to remove as much of the tumor as possible. After surgery, the patients are infused with a virus that has been genetically altered so that it is not infectious and so that it contains a gene from the herpes simplex virus. The herpes gene is sensitive to a drug called ganciclovir. Once inside the brain, the genetically altered virus infects any remaining tumor cells. When this occurs, the herpes gene is established inside the cancer cells. After the virus infects the cancer cells, the patients are given ganciclovir. This drug would kill both the virus and the brain tumor cells.
Code the Other Cancer-Directed Therapy field to 2 [Other experimental cancer-directed therapy (not included elsewhere)].
Date of Diagnosis: If a clinician states his current diagnosis of malignancy is based on a CT scan done at an early date that contained a diagnosis of only "neoplasm" or "worrisome for carcinoma" should the date of diagnosis be the date of the scan?
Yes. Code the Date of Diagnosis field to the date of the scan. The physician's clinical impression upon reviewing the earlier scan, is that the malignancy was confirmed by the scan. If there is a medical review of a previous scan that indicates the patient had a malignancy at an earlier date, then the earlier date is the date of diagnosis, i.e., the date is back-dated.
EOD-Clinical Extension--Prostate: For prostate cancer, can an elevated PSA be used to code metastasis? See discussion.
5/31/98 PE: 30 gm prostate with nodularity, suspicious for CA.
Final diagnosis: Stage D Ca of prostate with mets, NOS
PTA IVP: Normal collecting system
5/11/98 CXR: NED
PSA 86.3 Suggestive of prostate Ca per MD
5/13/98 TURP and bilat. orchiectomy: Plan was to perform orchiectomy as treatment of choice if biopsy was positive. Appears MD feels that the patient has mets, NOS based on the elevated PSA.
5/13/98 TURP Adenocarcinoma, PD
For cases diagnosed 1998-2003, do not code the EOD-Clinical Extension field based on elevated PSA alone. If a recognized practitioner states that there is metastasis, then metastasis should be coded.
In this case, code the EOD-Clinical Extension field to 85 [Metastasis] because it is Stage D. But if you had D1 or D2 staging based on the involvement of lymph nodes, then that involvement would be coded under EOD lymph nodes and not under the clinical extension field.
Primary Site--Lymphoma: How should you code the primary site for a lymphoma that presents with involvement of an extranodal site and regional lymph nodes? See discussion.
1. Lymphoma involves the spleen and the splenic lymph nodes.
2. MALT Lymphoma involves the stomach and the gastric and iliac lymph nodes.
1. Code the Primary Site field to C42.2 [spleen].
2. Code the Primary Site field to C16._ [stomach].
When lymphoma presents in an extranodal site and in the regional lymph nodes for that extranodal site, code the Primary Site field to the extranodal site. The typical disease process is that lymphoma can spread from an extranodal organ to its regional lymph nodes. It cannot metastasize from the regional lymph node to the extranodal organ. The exception to this would be if the lymph nodes presented as one large mass that extended into the regional organ.
EOD-Pathologic Extension--Prostate: Can a pathological extension code be assigned when a retropubic prostatectomy is done? See discussion.
The TNM manual states, "Total prostatoseminalvesiculectomy and pelvic lymph node dissection are required for pathologic staging."
For cases diagnosed 1998-2003:
The pathology report from a retropubic prostatectomy should be used to code the Pathologic Extension field. This field is coded using pathology report information from the prostatectomy operation regardless of the surgical approach and regardless of whether or not a pelvic lymph node dissection was performed. This is one area in which TNM rules for pathologic staging and SEER rules for EOD are slightly different.
EOD-Size of Primary Tumor--Breast/Cervix: When coding tumor size, when do you use 997 for breast cases and 000 versus 999 for breast and other primaries? See discussion.
Example 1: Ductal carcinoma found in axillary lymph nodes. No tumor found in breast on physical exam or by pathological exam of the breast, but physician states that the breast is definitely the primary site.
Example 2: Paget disease for breast carcinoma with no underlying tumor.
Example 3: Inspection of the cervix shows no visible tumor; biopsy of the cervix reveals CIN III or squamous cell carcinoma, either invasive or in situ.
For cases diagnosed 1998-2003:
Code the EOD-Size of Primary Tumor field as follows:
Example 1: Code to 000 [No mass, no tumor found, no Paget disease] when a tumor of a stated primary site is not found, but the tumor has metastasized.
Example 2: Code to 997 [Paget disease of nipple with no demonstrable tumor] if there is no underlying tumor and the patient presents with Paget of the breast.
Example 3: Code to 999 [Size not stated] when no size of tumor is given on the pathology report. Do not use 000 in the size field when a tumor is not visible on physical exam or by imaging, but tumor is found microscopically.
EOD-Size of Primary Tumor--Melanoma: How do you code tumor size for a melanoma diagnosed by a positive lymph node biopsy when the primary site is coded C44.9 because no primary site was identified? See discussion.
Should the size be 000 because no primary was found or 999 for unknown?
For cases diagnosed 1998-2003:
Code the EOD-Size of Primary Tumor field to 000 [No mass; no tumor found] when primary site is coded to C449.
An official website of the United States government
Home