Question:  My report says I have invasive ductal carcinoma, Nottingham grade II, score 7.  What is the difference between grade II and score 7?

Answer:  Invasive cancers are graded using the Nottingham system.  Your pathologist looks at your cancer and evaluates three things, each of which gets a number from 1-3.  Then these three numbers are added together to come up with your score.  Scores can range from 3-9.  A score of 3, 4, or 5 equals grade I; a score of 6 or 7 equals grade II; and a score of 8 or 9 equals grade III.  So your report is correct.  If you want more information on invasive cancer grading click here.