There are three ways that cancer spreads in the body.
Cancer can spread through tissue, the lymph system, and the blood:
- Tissue. The cancer spreads from where it began by growing into nearby areas.
- Lymph system. The cancer spreads from where it began by getting into the lymph system. The cancer travels through the lymph vessels to other parts of the body.
- Blood. The cancer spreads from where it began by getting into the blood. The cancer travels through the blood vessels to other parts of the body.
Cancer may spread from where it began to other parts of the body.
When cancer spreads to another part of the body, it is called metastasis. Cancer cells break away from where they began (the primary tumor) and travel through the lymph system or blood.
- Lymph system. The cancer gets into the lymph system, travels through the lymph vessels, and forms a tumor (metastatic tumor) in another part of the body.
- Blood. The cancer gets into the blood, travels through the blood vessels, and forms a tumor (metastatic tumor) in another part of the body.
The metastatic tumor is the same type of cancer as the primary tumor. For example, if adrenocortical carcinoma spreads to the lung, the cancer cells in the lung are actually adrenocortical carcinoma cells. The disease is metastatic adrenocortical carcinoma, not lung cancer.
Many cancer deaths are caused when cancer moves from the original tumor and spreads to other tissues and organs. This is called metastatic cancer. This animation shows how cancer cells travel from the place in the body where they first formed to other parts of the body.
The following stages are used for adrenocortical carcinoma:
Stage I
In stage I, the tumor is 5 centimeters or smaller and is found in the adrenal gland only.
Stage II
In stage II, the tumor is larger than 5 centimeters and is found in the adrenal gland only.
Stage III
In stage III, the tumor can be any size and has spread:
- to fat or lymph nodes near the adrenal gland; or
- to nearby tissues, but not to the organs near the adrenal gland.
Stage IV
In stage IV, the tumor can be any size and has spread:
- to nearby tissues and to fat and lymph nodes near the adrenal gland; or
- to organs near the adrenal gland and may have spread to nearby lymph nodes; or
- to other parts of the body, such as the liver or lung.
Recurrent adrenocortical carcinoma is cancer that has recurred after it has been treated. The cancer may come back in the adrenal cortex or in other parts of the body.
References:
https://www.cancer.gov/types/adrenocortical/patient/adrenocortical-treat…