The extent of the disease is determinant to the lymphoma prognosis.
During stage 1, cancer is limited to a group of lymph nodes, usually in the neck or armpits, while during stage 2, there are usually more than two groups of lymph nodes.
Stage 3 is diagnosed when cancer has spread to a series of lymph node groups and in stage 4, cancer has already spread to organs and bone marrow, in addition to the lymphatic system.