International Classification of Diseases for Oncology Module: ICD-O/3rd Edition

Author: (American) Fritz (April Fritz) et al. compiled, Dong Jingwu translated
Publisher:
Publishing Time: 2003-02-01
Features: The International Classification of Diseases for Oncology (Oncology) (ICD-O)(1) has been in use for nearly 25 years. It is primarily used for tumor or cancer registration, providing codes for the (anatomical) location and (morphological) tissue of tumors typically derived from pathology reports. According to an agreement with the College of American Pathologists, the morphological section of ICD-O has been incorporated into the Systematized Nomenclature of Medicine (SNOMED)(2)(3) classification as the tumor section in the field of morphology. The second edition(4) of the International Classification of Diseases for Oncology was edited by Constance Percy, Valerie VanHolten, and Calum Muir and published in 1990. The anatomical section of the third edition is based on the tumor section of ICD-10(5), remaining the same as the second edition. However, the morphological section has been revised. New classifications have been introduced, particularly for lymphomas and leukemias, and new codes have been assigned to them. Several years ago, the REAL (Revised European-American Lymphoma) classification(6) was introduced for non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and registrars were required to record these tumors using ICD-O codes. The FAB (French-American-British) system(7) has also been updated with terminology related to leukemia. When the ICD-O Working Group was convened in 1998, only the idea of revising these two sections was considered, but finally, it was decided to revise the entire book. During 1999, field trials were conducted for the morphological section of the third edition of ICD-O. We thank all the registries worldwide for the suggestions they provided for this edition.