California Cancer Reporting System Standards Volume I: Abstracting and Coding Procedures for Hospitals
Treatment terms include:
Therapy that normally modifies, controls, removes, or destroys proliferating tumor tissue, whether primary or metastatic, even if it cannot be considered curative for a particular patient in view of the extent of disease, incompleteness of treatment, apparent lack of response, size of the dose administered, mortality during surgery, or other reason. The term excludes therapy that has no effect on malignant tissue. Procedures administered for the sole purpose of relieving symptoms are therefore not considered to be cancer treatment.
Proliferating malignant cells or an area of active production of malignant cells. Sometimes malignant cells are found in tissue in which they did not originate and are not reproducing. A procedure that removes cancer cells but does not attack a site of proliferation of the cells (thoracentesis, for example) is not considered cancer treatment.
Ordinarily means (1) non-curative, or (2) alleviation of symptoms. If used for a procedure that is directed toward symptoms only, the therapy is not considered to be treatment (e.g., colostomy, removal of fluid—even if cancer cells are present—to ease pressure, neurosurgery to relieve pain).
Applies to medications that prevent the development, maturation, or spread of cancer cells. Included are drugs for chemotherapy (see Section VI.4), hormonal treatment (see Section VI.5), and immunotherapy (see Section VI.6). For cases diagnosed 1/1/2005 forward, registrars must use SEER*Rx, for coding systemic treatment (i.e. chemotherapy, hormone therapy, and immunotherapy). SEER*Rx is the downloadable, interactive antineoplastic drug database that replaces SEER Self-Instructional Manual Book 8, Antineoplastic Drugs. The software can be downloaded from the SEER*Rx Web Site.
See Watchful Waiting.
For solid tumors, see the Multiple Primary and Histology Coding Rules manual and for hematopoietic and lymphoid neoplams see the Hematopoietic and Lymphoid Neoplasm Case Reportability and Coding manual and the Hematopoietic Database to determine disease recurrence.
The treatment modalities did not destroy or modify the cancer cells. The tumor either became larger (disease progression) or stayed the same size after treatment.
A treatment option for patients with slow, indolent diseases, such as prostate cancer. The physician closely monitors the patient and delays treatment until the patient becomes symptomatic or exhibits other signs of disease progression, such as rising PSA. Also referred to as Active Surveillance.