Summary Stage is the most basic way of categorizing how far a cancer has spread from its point of origin. Historically, Summary Stage has also been called General Stage, California Stage, historic stage, and SEER Stage. The 2018 version of Summary Stage applies to every site and/or histology combination, including lymphomas and leukemias. Summary Stage uses all information available in the medical record; in other words, it is a combination of the most precise clinical and pathological documentation of the extent of disease.

The Summary Stage Manual is provided below as a single PDF.

Complete Summary Stage 2018 Manual (PDF, 3.7 MB)

Revision History

There were no changes between v3.2 and v3.3.

Refer to the Historical Staging and Coding Manuals for previous versions of the manual.

Suggested Citation

Ruhl JL, Callaghan C, Schussler N (eds.) Summary Stage 2018: Codes and Coding Instructions, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, 2024.

Copyright Information

All material in this report is in the public domain and may be reproduced or copied without permission; citation as to source, however, is appreciated.