Survival Rates for Adrenal Cancer

Survival rates are a way to measure how many people survive a certain type of cancer over time. They can’t tell you exactly what will happen with any one person, but they might help give you a better understanding of what to expect.

For more information on neuroblastoma, see Survival Rates by Risk Group for Neuroblastoma.

What is a 5-year relative survival rate?

A relative survival rate compares people with a certain cancer to people without it. It looks at how likely they are to live for a set number of years after diagnosis.

For example, if the 5-year relative survival rate for a specific stage of adrenal cancer is 80%, it means that people with that cancer are about 80% as likely to live for at least 5 years after being diagnosed as those who do not have cancer.

Where do these numbers come from?

The American Cancer Society relies on information from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database. This database is maintained by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) to provide survival statistics for different types of cancer.

The SEER database tracks 5-year relative survival rates for adrenal cancer in the United States, based on how far the cancer has spread. The SEER database, however, does not group cancers by AJCC/ENSAT stages (stage I, stage II, stage III, stage IV). Instead, it groups cancers into localized, regional, and distant stages:

• Localized: There is no sign that the cancer has spread outside of the adrenal gland.
• Regional: The cancer has spread outside the adrenal gland to nearby structures or lymph nodes.
• Distant: The cancer has spread to distant parts of the body, such as the liver or lungs.

5-year relative survival rates for adrenal cancer in adults

These numbers are based on people diagnosed with cancers of the adrenal gland between 2015 and 2021. Survival rates might differ based on the type of adrenal cancer.

SEER* stage	5-year relative survival rate for all adrenal cancers	5-year relative survival rate for adrenocortical carcinoma in adults
Localized	80%	68%
Regional	62%	49%
Distant	39%	10%
All SEER stages combined	57%	38%

*SEER = Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results

5-year relative survival rates for adrenal cancer in children

Because adrenal cancers are rare in children, the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database does not collect this information.

Adrenocortical carcinoma

The International Pediatric Adrenocortical Tumor Registry (IPACTR) collects information on children diagnosed with ACC and how well they respond to treatment.

For children with small tumors and localized disease, 5-year survival rates are about 90%. However, for children with tumors that cannot be removed fully with surgery or those where hormone levels remain high, outcomes in this disease are poor.

Pheochromocytoma

Pheochromocytomas in children are rare, so it is challenging to know what to expect. These tumors are most often seen in children with family cancer syndromes. Many pheochromocytomas in children are benign (not cancer).

Children with pheochromocytoma can often be treated successfully, however relapses are common. Children with a pheochromocytoma that cannot be fully removed or that had already spread at diagnosis are more likely to have the tumor come back.

Understanding the numbers

• These numbers apply only to the stage of the cancer when it is first diagnosed. They do not apply if the cancer grows, spreads, or comes back after treatment.
• These numbers don’t take everything into account. Survival rates are grouped based on how far the cancer has spread. But other factors, such as your age and overall health, and how well the cancer responds to treatment, can also affect your outlook.
• People now being diagnosed with adrenal cancer might have a better outlook than these numbers show. Treatments improve over time, and these numbers are based on people who were diagnosed and treated at least five years earlier.