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Mortality rates show how likely an individual is to die. The following table shows the percentage of people who died in the United States within five years of a cancer diagnosis for the time period of 2006-2012 according to the National Cancer Institute. The higher the percentage, the more likely a person will die from all causes within five years of being diagnosed. These people may not have all died from that specific cancer or even from cancer at all; they simply did not survive five years for some reason. For example, people who died from heart failure or accidents are still included in the mortality rate for cancer if they had a cancer diagnosis at the time of their deaths.
As the table illustrates, people diagnosed with certain types of cancer may have a much better outcome than others. For example, those diagnosed with breast or prostate cancer have a much better outcome than those diagnosed with lung or stomach cancer. It is important to remember that survival rates vary widely based on the stage of the cancer at the time of diagnosis. Other factors, such as age and health of the patient also contribute to an individual's survival. This table does not factor in an individual's stage of cancer, health, age, or type of treatment, if any. Some individuals choose to not treat their cancer at all.
The figures below are an overall reflection of mortality rates throughout the U.S. population. They should not be used to predict an individual's specific outcome. A physician, specifically an oncologist, should be consulted for the purpose of guidance about specific treatments and prognoses.
Percentage of cancer patients deceased within five years after cancer diagnosis:
- Bone cancer 32.6%
- Bladder cancer 24.7%
- Brain cancer 69.2%
- Breast cancer 10.3%
- Cervical cancer 32.5%
- Colon cancer 34.9%
- Esophageal cancer 82.6%
- Gallbladder cancer 81.5%
- Kidney cancer 25.3%
- Laryngeal cancer 39.3%
- Leukemia 40.3%
- Liver cancer 82.5%
- Lung cancer 82.3%
- Non-Hodgkin lymphoma 29.3%
- Oral cancer 36%
- Ovarian cancer 53.8%
- Pancreatic cancer 92.3%
- Prostate cancer 1.1%
- Skin cancer 8.1%
- Stomach cancer 69.6%
- Thyroid cancer 1.9%
- Uterine cancer 69.1%
This is not a complete list of cancer mortality rates as published by the NCI. These figures are at least five years old and do not reflect recent advances in medicine that have improved the detection and treatments of cancer and their outcomes. Again, these are average death rates that should not be assumed to apply to individuals, whose prognoses will vary depending on age, sex, race, general health, swiftness of detection, type of treatment, progression of disease, and complicating factors.