Once ovarian cancer has been diagnosed, it's surgically staged. In this process, a surgery called a laparotomy is done, and the staging is performed according to the size of the tumors and the spread of the cancer, according to the National Cancer Institute. Staging is a standardized way of describing the cancer that helps guide treatment and prognosis. There are four main stages of ovarian cancer, with some stages having further sub-stages for classification purposes.
Stage 3A
In Stage 3A ovarian cancer, cancer is grossly visible on one or both ovaries during surgery, but cancer cannot be seen with the naked eye in the abdomen, according to the American Cancer Society. The lymph nodes have no cancer in them as well. After surgery, biopsies involving the upper abdominal lining are found to have microscopic amounts of cancer in them when examined with a microscope. The five-year survival rate--the percentage of patients with this stage of ovarian cancer who live five years or more past diagnosis--is about 45 percent, according to the American Cancer Society.
Stage 3B
The National Cancer Institute describes Stage 3B as encompassing cancer that's in one or both ovaries, and small tumors are visible in the abdominal lining (called the peritoneum). These abdominal tumors are 2cm or less, and the lymph nodes are cancer-free. The five-year survival rate for Stage 3B ovarian cancer is approximately 39 percent.
Stage 3C
The last sub-stage of Stage 3 ovarian cancer is Stage3C. In addition to involving one or both ovaries, cancer has been found in the lymph nodes, and/or there are tumors in the peritoneum that are larger than 2cm. The American Cancer Society estimates that in this stage, patients have a five-year survival rate of approximately 35 percent.
Stage 4
Stage 4 is the last stage of ovarian cancer, also known as metastatic ovarian cancer. This means that the cancer has spread to other areas or organs in the body, such as the inside of the liver or the lungs. If the fluid around the lungs is found to have cancer cells in it, the cancer is also considered Stage 4. This stage of ovarian cancer has an 18 percent five-year survival rate.
