Neoplasia USMLE Step 1 Practice Question
A 62-year-old man with colon adenocarcinoma presents with BP 138/82, HR 88, RR 16, temp 37.2°C. CT abdomen shows tumor invasion through the muscularis propria into pericolonic fat with metastasis to 3 regional lymph nodes; no distant metastases detected. Carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) is elevated at 8.2 ng/mL. He denies weight loss. Which tumor characteristic is most predictive of prognosis in this patient?
Answer choices
- AMitotic rate alone
- BWhether the tumor is grossly ulcerated
- CColor of the tumor on endoscopy
- DDegree of cellular atypia alone
- ETumor stage based on extent of spreadCorrect answer
- FTumor grade differentiation degree less powerful than stage for prognosis
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