What are the survival rates seen in throat cancer patients?
Survival rates for different cancer types are calculated by making a note of the percentage of people who continue to remain alive and healthy after completing their treatment for the same stage and type of cancer, over a defined period of time, such as 5 years or 10 years. The available survival rate data cannot serve as an accurate indicator of how long each patient will live with their disease. However, it gives an understanding of the chances of success of a patient’s treatment, depending on the stage and type of diagnosis.
What is a five-year survival rate?
Five-year survival rates for cancer are calculated as the percentage of people who live for at least 5 years after being diagnosed with cancer (irrespective of whether they received treatment or not). For instance, if the 5-year survival rate for a particular cancer type is 90%, it means that 90 out of 100 people who had that type of cancer, are still alive after 5 years from their initial diagnosis.
What are the survival rates for throat cancer patients diagnosed at different stages?
In general, the survival rates and outcomes for patients who get diagnosed with throat cancer at an early stage (stage 1 or stage 2), are better than that of patients who get diagnosed at an advanced stage (stage 3 or stage 4).
Survival rates for hypopharyngeal throat cancers stage 1 through 4:
- Hypopharyngeal cancer has a poorer survival rate compared to cancers originating in other sites of the head and neck region since most of these patients get diagnosed at an advanced stage.
- The overall five year survival rate is around 20 to 47%.
- The five-year relative survival rate for patients diagnosed with stage 1 hypopharyngeal throat cancer, is 63.1%.
- The five-year relative survival rate for patients diagnosed with stage 2 hypopharyngeal throat cancer, is 57.5%.
- The five-year relative survival rate for patients diagnosed with stage 3 hypopharyngeal throat cancer, is 41.8%.
- The five-year relative survival rate for patients diagnosed with stage 4 hypopharyngeal throat cancer, is 22%.