Survival Rates for Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors

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 you better understand what to expect.

What is a 5-year relative survival rate?

A relative survival rate compares people with the same type and stage of gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) to people in the overall population.

For example, if the 5-year relative survival rate for a specific stage of GIST is 80%, it means that on average, people who have that cancer are about 80% as likely to live for at least 5 years after being diagnosed, compared to people who don’t have that cancer.

To estimate survival rates, doctors must look at people who were treated at least 5 years ago.

Where do these numbers come from?

The American Cancer Society relies on information from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database, 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 GIST in the United States based on how far the cancer has spread. The SEER database, however, does not group cancers by AJCC TNM stages (stage I, stage II, stage III, etc.). Instead, it groups cancers into localized, regional, and distant stages:

• Localized. The cancer is limited to the organ where it started, such as the small intestine, esophagus, or stomach.
• Regional. The cancer has grown into nearby structures or spread to nearby lymph nodes.
• Distant. The cancer has spread to distant parts of the body, such as the liver or bones.

5-year relative survival rates for GIST

These numbers, which are the most recent available, are based on people diagnosed with GIST in the small intestine, esophagus, colon, rectum, peritoneum, stomach, and omentum between 2015 and 2021.

SEER* Stage	5-Year Relative Survival Rate
Localized	96%
Regional	87%
Distant	57%
All SEER stages combined	88%

*SEER = Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results

Understanding the numbers

These numbers apply only to the stage of the cancer when it is first diagnosed. They do not apply later on if the cancer grows, spreads, or comes back after treatment.

These numbers don’t take everything into account. Other factors can affect your prognosis, such as your age and overall health, where the cancer started, whether it was able to be removed with surgery, and how well the cancer responds to treatment.

Treatments improve over time. These numbers are based on people who were diagnosed and treated at least 5 years earlier. Changes in treatment since then might result in a better prognosis for people diagnosed with GIST today.