While cancer is generally considered a disease of old age, children can also develop cancer. In contrast to adults, carcinomas are exceptionally rare in children..

The two biggest risk factors for ovarian carcinoma are age and family history.

80% of cases in the United States are diagnosed by mammography screening.

Staging of carcinoma refers to the process of combining physical/clinical examination, pathological review of cells and tissues, surgical techniques, laboratory tests, and imaging studies in a logical fashion to obtain information about the size of the neoplasm and the extent of its invasion and metastasis.

Carcinomas are usually staged with Roman numerals. In most classifications, Stage I and Stage II carcinomas are confirmed when the tumor has been found to be small and/or to have spread to local structures only. Stage III carcinomas typically have been found to have spread to regional lymph nodes, tissues, and/or organ structures, while Stage IV tumors have already metastasized through the blood to distant sites, tissues, or organs.

In some types of carcinomas, Stage 0 carcinoma has been used to describe carcinoma "in situ", and occult carcinomas detectable only via examination of sputum for malignant cells (in lung carcinomas).

In more recent staging systems, substages (a, b, c) are becoming more commonly used to better define groups of patients with similar prognosis or treatment options.

Carcinoma stage is the variable that has been most consistently and tightly linked to the prognosis of the malignancy.

The criteria for staging can differ dramatically based upon the organ system in which the tumor arises. For example, the colon and bladder cancer staging system relies on depth of invasion, staging of breast carcinoma is more dependent on the size of the tumor, and in renal carcinoma, staging is based on both the size of the tumor and the depth of the tumor invasion into the renal sinus. Carcinoma of the lung has a more complicated staging system, taking into account a number of size and anatomic variables.

The UICC/AJCC TNM systems are most often used. For some common tumors, however, classical staging methods (such as the Dukes classification for colon cancer) are still used.

The 1973 WHO grading system for TCCs (papilloma, G1, G2 or G3) is most commonly used despite being superseded by the 2004 WHO grading (papillary neoplasm of low malignant potential [PNLMP], low grade, and high grade papillary carcinoma).

According to the NIH Consensus Conference , if DCIS is allowed to go untreated, the natural course or natural history varies according to the grade of the DCIS. Unless treated, approximately 60 percent of low-grade DCIS lesions will have become invasive at 40 years follow-up. High-grade DCIS lesions that have been inadequately resected and not given radiotherapy have a 50 percent risk of becoming invasive breast cancer within seven years. Approximately half of low-grade DCIS detected at screening will represent overdiagnosis, but overdiagnosis of high-grade DCIS is rare. The natural history of intermediate-grade DCIS is difficult to predict. Approximately one-third of malignant calcification clusters detected at screening mammography already have an invasive focus.

The prognosis of IDC depends, in part, on its histological subtype. Mucinous, papillary, cribriform, and tubular carcinomas have longer survival, and lower recurrence rates. The prognosis of the most common form of IDC, called "IDC Not Otherwise Specified", is intermediate. Finally, some rare forms of breast cancer (e.g., sarcomatoid carcinoma, inflammatory carcinoma) have a poor prognosis. Regardless of the histological subtype, the prognosis of IDC depends also on tumor size, presence of cancer in the lymph nodes, histological grade, presence of cancer in small vessels (vascular invasion), expression of hormone receptors and of oncogenes like HER2/neu.

These parameters can be entered into models that provide a statistical probability of systemic spread. The probability of systemic spread is a key factor in determining whether radiation and chemotherapy are worthwhile. The individual parameters are important also because they can predict how well a cancer will respond to specific chemotherapy agents.

Overall, the 5-year survival rate of invasive ductal carcinoma was approximately 85% in 2003.

Anal Pap smears similar to those used in cervical cancer screening have been studied for early detection of anal cancer in high-risk individuals. In 2011, the HIV clinic implemented a program to enhance access to anal cancer screening for HIV-positive men. Nurse practitioners perform anal Papanicolaou screening, and men with abnormal results receive further evaluation with high-resolution anoscopy. The program has helped identify many precancerous growths, allowing them to be safely removed.

The first step to diagnosing tonsil carcinoma is to obtain an accurate history from the patient. The physician will also examine the patient for any indicative physical signs. A few tests then, maybe conducted depending on the progress of the disease or if the doctor feels the need for. The tests include:

Fine needle aspiration, blood tests, MRI, x-rays and PET scan.

LCIS (lobular neoplasia is considered pre-cancerous) is an indicator (marker) identifying women with an increased risk of developing invasive breast cancer. This risk extends more than 20 years. Most of the risk relates to subsequent invasive ductal carcinoma rather than to invasive lobular carcinoma.

While older studies have shown that the increased risk is equal for both breasts, a more recent study suggests that the ipsilateral (same side) breast may be at greater risk.

The staging of a tumor mass is based on TNM staging.

T staging is the based on the tumor mass. The N staging is based on the extent of spread of cancer to the lymph nodes. Finally, the M stage indicates if the cancer has spread beyond the head and neck or not.

For surface epithelial-stromal tumors, the most common sites of metastasis are the pleural cavity (33%), the liver (26%), and the lungs (3%).

Transitional refers to the histological subtype of the cancerous cells as seen under a microscope.

This disease is often discovered during surgery for other conditions, e.g., hernia repair, following which an experienced pathologist can confirm the diagnosis. Advanced stages may present as tumors palpable on the abdomen or distention of the belly ("jelly belly" is sometimes used as a slang term for the condition). Due to the rarity of this disease, it is important to obtain an accurate diagnosis so that appropriate treatment may be obtained from a surgical oncologist who specializes in appendix cancer. Diagnostic tests may include CT scans, examination of tissue samples obtained through laparoscopy, and the evaluation of tumor markers. In most cases a colonoscopy is unsuitable as a diagnostic tool because in most cases appendix cancer invades the abdominal cavity but not the colon (however, spread inside the colon is occasionally reported). PET scans may be used to evaluate high-grade mucinous adenocarcinoma, but this test is not reliable for detecting low-grade tumors because those do not take up the dye which shows up on scans. New MRI procedures are being developed for disease monitoring, but standard MRIs are not typically used as a diagnostic tool. Diagnosis is confirmed through pathology.

The criteria for diagnosing BACs have changed since 1999. Under the new definition, BAC is defined as a tumor that grows in a lepidic (that is, a scaly covering) fashion along pre-existing airway structures, without detectable invasion or destruction of the underlying tissue, blood vessels, or lymphatics. Because invasion must be ruled out, BAC can be diagnosed only after complete sectioning and examination of the entire tumor, not using biopsy or cytology samples. BAC is considered a pre-invasive malignant lesion that, after further mutation and progression, eventually generates an invasive adenocarcinoma. Therefore, it is considered a form of carcinoma "in situ" (CIS).

Tumor size staging and node involvement staging can be combined into a single clinical staging number.

While the histopathologic features and molecular features of ADH are that of (low-grade) DCIS, its clinical behaviour, unlike low-grade DCIS, is substantially better; thus, the more aggressive treatment for DCIS is not justified. In oncology in general, it is observed that tumour size is often strongly predictive of the clinical behaviour and, thus, a number of cancers (e.g. adenocarcinoma of the lung, papillary renal cell carcinoma) are defined, in part, on the basis of a minimum size.

Because DCIS is normally found early and it is treated or managed, it is difficult to say what occurs if left untreated. About 2% of women who are diagnosed with this condition and treated died within 10 years. Biomarkers can identify which women who were initially diagnosed with DCIS are at high or low risk of subsequent invasive cancer.

Since many, if not most, anal cancers derive from HPV infections, and since the HPV vaccine before exposure to HPV prevents infection by some strains of the virus and has been shown to reduce the incidence of potentially precancerous lesions, scientists surmise that HPV vaccination may reduce the incidence of anal cancer.

On 22 December 2010, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Gardasil vaccine to prevent anal cancer and pre-cancerous lesions in males and females aged 9 to 26 years. The vaccine has been used before to help prevent cervical, vulvar, and vaginal cancer, and associated lesions caused by HPV types 6, 11, 16, and 18 in women.

It is diagnosed based on tissue, e.g. a biopsy. Histomorphologically, it has architectural changes seen in low-grade ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), e.g. cribriform architecture, and like low-grade DCIS has minimal nuclear atypia and no necrosis.

Prognosis can range considerably for patients, depending where on the scale they have been staged. Generally speaking, the earlier the cancer is diagnosed, the better the prognosis. The overall 5-year survival rate for all stages of penile cancer is about 50%.

LCIS may be treated with close clinical follow-up and mammographic screening, tamoxifen or related hormone controlling drugs to reduce the risk of developing cancer, or bilateral prophylactic mastectomy. Some surgeons consider bilateral prophylactic mastectomy to be overly aggressive treatment except for certain high-risk cases.

For more general information, see ovarian cancer.

For advanced cancer of this histology, the US National Cancer Institute recommends a method of chemotherapy that combines intravenous (IV) and intraperitoneal (IP) administration. Preferred chemotherapeutic agents include a platinum drug with a taxane.

As of 2010 there is insufficient evidence to determine if screening for bladder cancer in people without symptoms is effective or not.

In 2013 a preliminary, small study of 98 samples of urine, all from men—24 who had cancer, and 74 with bladder-related problems but no cancer yet used a gas chromatograph to successfully examine the vapor from heated urine samples to identify cancer.

Diagnosis may include a fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) test, computed tomography urography (CTU), magnetic resonance urography (MRU), intravenous pyelography (IVP) x-ray, ureteroscopy, or biopsy.

GCNIS is not palpable, and not visible on macroscopic examination of testicular tissue. Microscopic examination of affected testicular tissue most commonly shows germ cells with enlarged hyperchromatic nuclei with prominent nucleoli and clear cytoplasm. These cells are typically arranged along the basement membrane of the tubule, and mitotic figures are frequently seen. The sertoli cells are pushed toward the lumen by the neoplastic germ cells, and spermatogenesis is almost always absent in the affected tubules. Pagetoid spread of GCNIS into the rete testis is common. Immunostaining with placental alkaline phosphatase (PLAP) highlights GCNIS cell membranes in 95 percent of cases. OCT3/4 is a sensitive and specific nuclear stain of GCNIS.

Small carcinoids (<2 cm) without features of malignancy may be treated by appendectomy if complete removal is possible. Other carcinoids and adenocarcinomas may require right hemicolectomy. Note: the term "carcinoids" is outdated: these tumors are now more accurately called "neuroendocrine tumors." For more information, see "appendiceal neuroendocrine tumors."

Pseudomyxoma peritonei treatment includes cytoreductive surgery which includes the removal of visible tumor and affected essential organs within the abdomen and pelvis. The peritoneal cavity is infused with heated chemotherapy known as HIPEC in an attempt to eradicate residual disease. The surgery may or may not be preceded or followed with intravenous chemotherapy or HIPEC.