Survival rates are often used by doctors as a standard way of discussing a person's prognosis (outlook). Some patients with cancer may want to know the survival statistics for people in similar situations, while others may not find the numbers helpful, or may even not want to know them. If you do not want to read about the survival statistics for stomach cancer, stop reading here and skip to the next section.
The 5-year survival rate refers to the percentage of patients who live at least 5 years after their cancer is diagnosed. Of course, many people live much longer than 5 years (and many are cured).
To get 5-year survival rates, doctors have to look at people who were treated at least 5 years ago. Improvements in treatment since then may result in a more favorable outlook for people now being diagnosed with stomach cancer.
Survival rates are often based on previous outcomes of large numbers of people who had the disease, but they cannot predict what will happen in any particular person's case. Many other factors may affect a person's outlook, such as their general health, the location of the cancer in the stomach, and how well the cancer responds to treatment. Your doctor can tell you how these survival rates may apply to you.
The survival rates that follow come from the National Cancer Institute's SEER database. They are based on people diagnosed with stomach cancer and treated with surgery between 1991 and 2000. Survival for patients not treated with surgery is likely to be poorer.
The 5-year survival rates for stomach cancer, by stage are as follows:
Stage IA |
71% |
Stage IB |
57% |
Stage IIA |
45% |
Stage IIB |
33% |
Stage IIIA |
20% |
Stage IIIB |
14% |
Stage IIIC |
9% |
Stage IV |
4% |
The overall 5-year relative survival rate of all people with stomach cancer in the United States is about 28%. The 5-year relative survival rate compares the observed survival of people with stomach cancer to that expected for people without stomach cancer. Since some people may die from other causes, this is a better way to see the impact of cancer on survival.
This survival rate has improved gradually over the last 30 years. One reason the survival rate is so poor is that most stomach cancers in the United States are diagnosed at an advanced rather than an early stage. The stage of the cancer has a major effect on a patient's prognosis (outlook for survival).
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