8th edition AJCC and imaging TNM: Time to break-in and assert in the staging process!

ABSTRACT

The current practice of oncology focuses not only on early diagnosis, staging, and treatment of cancer but also defies the concept of “One size fits all.” This paradigm shift of the 8th edition American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) manual to a “personalized medicine” approach sets the stage for introducing Imaging TNM (iTNM). The iTNM would provide physicians with a clear assessment of the disease extent derived exclusively from a combination of anatomical and functional imaging modalities and simplify decision-making in practice. Introduction of iTNM will complement the existing cTNM and pTNM and help to guide a personalized approach to patient management.