On an ensemble algorithm for clustering cancer patient data.

Background: The TNM staging system is based on three anatomic prognostic factors: Tumor, Lymph Node and Metastasis. However, cancer is no longer considered an anatomic disease. Therefore, the TNM should be expanded to accommodate new prognostic factors in order to increase the accuracy of estimating cancer patient outcome.

The clinical implications of integrating additional prognostic factors into the TNM.

Background And Objectives: The management of solid tumors is governed by host and tumor factors that traditionally have incorporated TNM staging with additional pathologic, biologic, and clinical host factors. Beyond the anatomic-based TNM, increasingly new prognostic and predictive factors are being discovered that have important survival and treatment implications. However, because the TNM is based on a "bin" model, additional prognostic factors would rapidly overwhelm the current system.