Understand your cancer report
A report can be full of unfamiliar words. These plain-language explanations tell you what a phrase means, what it does not prove, and what to ask — so the conversation with your care team makes more sense.
These pages explain report language in general. They cannot interpret your personal report — only your care team can do that.
Pathology report language
The words a pathologist uses to describe tissue removed by biopsy or surgery.
- What Does "Positive Margin" Mean in a Pathology Report?A positive margin means cancer cells were found at the edge of removed tissue. What that does and doesn't mean, and what to ask your care team.
- What Do "Negative" and "Close" Margins Mean?A negative (clear) margin means no cancer cells were seen at the edge of removed tissue. A close margin is nearby. What each means and what to ask.
- What Does "Poorly Differentiated" Mean on a Pathology Report?"Poorly differentiated" describes how abnormal cancer cells look under the microscope. What differentiation and grade mean, and what to ask your team.
- What Does "Lymphovascular Invasion" Mean?Lymphovascular invasion (LVI) means cancer cells were seen inside small blood or lymph vessels in the tissue sample. What it suggests and what to ask.
Biomarkers
Features tested on the cancer that can guide treatment choices.
- What Does HER2 Positive, Negative, or Low Mean?HER2 is a protein tested on some cancers, especially breast cancer. What HER2 positive, negative, and low mean, and how they guide treatment options.
- What Does "Triple-Negative" Breast Cancer Mean?Triple-negative means a breast cancer tests negative for estrogen receptors, progesterone receptors, and HER2. What that means for treatment options.
Scan & imaging report language
Phrases radiologists use to describe what they see — and how sure they are.
- What Does "Ground-Glass Opacity" Mean on a Lung Scan?A ground-glass opacity (GGO) is a hazy area on a lung CT scan. It has many causes — most not cancer. What GGO means and what follow-up may involve.
- What Does a "Pulmonary Nodule" Mean on a Scan?A pulmonary nodule is a small spot in the lung found on imaging. Most are not cancer. What a nodule means and how doctors decide on follow-up.
- What Does "Incidental Finding" Mean on a Scan?An incidental finding is something spotted on a scan that wasn't what the test was looking for. Most are harmless. What it means and what follow-up may involve.
- What Does "Suspicious" or "Indeterminate" Mean on a Scan?"Suspicious" and "indeterminate" describe how confident a radiologist is about a finding — not a diagnosis. What each means and what usually happens next.
Stage, grade & response
How far the cancer has spread, how the cells look, and how treatment is working.
- Stage vs. Grade: What's the Difference?Stage describes how far a cancer has spread. Grade describes how abnormal the cells look. They answer different questions — here's how they fit together.
- What Does "No Evidence of Disease" (NED) Mean?"No evidence of disease" (NED) means tests can't detect cancer right now. How NED differs from "cured," and what it means for follow-up.
- Remission vs. No Evidence of Disease: What's the Difference?"Remission" and "no evidence of disease" overlap but aren't identical. What complete and partial remission mean, and how NED fits in.
Next step
Turn what you read into questions for the team who can interpret your report.
Looking for a single word? Try the glossary or site search. Getting ready for a visit? See Prepare for your appointment.
How this page was created
Cancer Explained uses AI to organize and translate information from the authoritative sources cited on each page. Automated checks review claims, citations, clarity, duplication, and potential safety concerns before publication. Our content is not currently reviewed by physicians unless a specific qualified reviewer is named on the page. Cancer Explained provides general education and should not replace advice from your healthcare team.
Editorial status: Source verified — This page was created with AI assistance and checked against the sources listed on it. Source checking is not a medical review.
Human medical review: not completed. At this time, most Cancer Explained content has not been reviewed by a physician or other healthcare professional. Pages with documented human medical review identify the reviewer, credentials, and review date directly.
Read more about our editorial process, our use of AI, and our corrections policy.
Spotted a problem? Report an error — a factual mistake, broken or outdated source, confusing wording, or anything that seems unsafe. Please do not include names, medical record numbers, dates of birth, addresses, or other identifying medical information in your report.
After using this page, do you understand what to do next?
Anonymous — we only record the answer, never who gave it.