Survival Rates for Selected Adult Brain Tumors

Survival rates are a way to measure how many people survive a certain type of cancer over time. They cannot tell you exactly what will happen with any one person, but they may help give you a better understanding of how likely it is that treatment will be successful.

Keep in mind that survival rates are estimates and are often based on previous outcomes of large numbers of people who had a specific type of tumor, but they can’t predict what will happen in any particular person’s case. These statistics can be confusing and may lead you to have more questions. Your doctor is familiar with your situation; ask how these numbers may apply to you.

What is a 5-year relative survival rate?

A relative survival rate compares people with the same type of tumor to people in the overall population.

For example, if the 5-year relative survival rate for a specific type of brain tumor is 70%, it means that people who have that tumor are, on average, about 70% as likely as people who don’t have that tumor to live for at least 5 years after being diagnosed.

Survival rates for more common adult brain and spinal cord tumors

The numbers in the table below are for some of the more common types of brain and spinal cord tumors in adults. Accurate numbers are not readily available for all types of tumors, often because they are rare or are hard to classify.

These numbers come from the Central Brain Tumor Registry of the United States (CBTRUS) and are based on people who were treated between 2004 and 2020.

Survival rates for some types of brain and spinal cord tumors can vary widely by age, with younger people tending to have better outlooks than older people.

Type of Tumor	5-Year Relative Survival Rate
	Age 15–39	Age 40+
Diffuse (infiltrating) astrocytoma, low grade	79%	34%
Anaplastic astrocytoma	64%	21%
Glioblastoma	28%	6%
Oligodendroglioma	93%	79%
Anaplastic oligodendroglioma	N/A	61%
Ependymoma/anaplastic ependymoma	95%	91%
Meningioma	97%	88%

Understanding the numbers

• These numbers don’t take everything into account. Survival rates are grouped here based on tumor type and a person’s age. But other factors, such as the location of the tumor, whether it can be removed (or destroyed) completely, and whether the tumor cells have certain gene or chromosome changes, can also affect your outlook.
• People now being diagnosed with brain or spinal cord tumors may have a better outlook than these numbers show. Treatments have improved over time, and these numbers are based on people who were diagnosed and treated at least 5 years earlier.
• Remember, these survival rates can’t predict what will happen to any person. If you find these statistics confusing and you have more questions, talk to your doctor to better understand your specific situation.