Data Last Updated: June 9, 2025

Lymph Nodes Assessment Method Para-aortic

Description

This data item describes the method used to assess involvement of para-aortic lymph nodes associated with certain female genital cancers. In addition to assigning the N categories for vulva, vagina, and cervical cancers, the collection of specific lymph nodes and how they were assessed is important. * Status refers to positive or negative involvement * Assessment is the method by which the nodal status was determined There are 3 related data items that collect assessment method information on regional lymph nodes, and 1 data item for distant lymph nodes. The LN assessment data items collect how the lymph nodes were assessed for femoral-inguinal, para-aortic, and pelvic lymph nodes, and distant lymph nodes scalene and mediastinal. These related data items include * 3871: LN Assessment Method Femoral-Inguinal * 3872: LN Assessment Method Para-Aortic * 3873: LN Assessment Method Pelvic * 3874: LN Distant Assessment Method

Notes

**Note 1:** **Physician Statement** * Physician statement of para-aortic assessment method can be used to code this data item when no other information is available. **Note 2:** **Para-aortic lymph nodes** * Aortic * Lateral aortic/lumbar aortic * Para-aortic, NOS * Periaortic **Note 3:** **Isolated tumor cells** * For this data item, do not include isolated tumor cells (ITCs). **Note 4:** **Related data item** * The status of the lymph nodes is recorded in the related data item 3959: LN Status Para-aortic.
Code Description
0 Radiography, imaging
(Ultrasound (US), computed tomography scan (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), positron emission tomography scan (PET))

Physical exam only
1 Incisional biopsy; fine needle aspiration (FNA)
2 Lymphadenectomy
Sentinel node biopsy
Excisional biopsy or resection with microscopic confirmation
7 Para-aortic lymph node(s) assessed, unknown assessment method
8 Not applicable: Information not collected for this case
(If this item is required by your standard setter, use of code 8 will result in an edit error.)
9 Not documented in medical record
Para-aortic lymph node(s) not assessed or unknown if assessed