Gastric cancer (Stomach cancer) prognosis and survival rate
Prognosis or outlook is defined as “the chance of recovering from cancer”. In general, prognosis depends mainly on the type and location of the cancer, stage of the cancer, overall health, treatment decisions, etc. Defining survival rate is a mere prediction to understand the prevalence of cancer all over the world. Stomach cancer survival rate can be predicted depending upon the stage.
Survival rate for stage 1 stomach cancer
About 75% of the patients with stomach cancer are expected to survive for 5 years or more after their diagnosis.
Survival rate for stage 2 stomach cancer
After the diagnosis, an average of 50% stage 2 stomach cancer patients are expected to survive for 5 years or more
Survival rate for stage 3 stomach cancer
Stage 3 stomach cancer life expectancy or survival rate is predicted to about 20% for five years after the diagnosis.
Survival rate for stage 4 stomach cancer
Stage 4 stomach cancer prognosis or chances of survival is expected to be less than 5% for 5 years or more after a patient is diagnosed with it. Read about diagnosis of stomach cancer.
Stomach cancer survival rate by age
Surviving adult cancers is extremely dependent on the age at which a person is diagnosed. The most favorable condition for positive treatment of stomach cancer is the diagnosis at a young age. The American Cancer Society stated that stomach cancer is found mostly affecting people who are above 60 years. Another estimate suggests that the average age of people diagnosed with stomach cancer is above 65 years.
Cancer research UK has stated that highest number of stomach cancer survivors are between 15-40 years of age and lowest when a person crosses above 75 years of age.
Can you survive stomach cancer?
Is stomach cancer curable? Is stomach cancer treatment success rate good? Factors such as young age, early diagnosis, proper treatment, etc helps in curing stomach cancer. Overall or average survival rate for early stages by National Cancer Institute is about 70%, where the stomach cancer survival rate combined for all stages for five-years is estimated to be about 30%.
Advanced stomach cancer life expectancy or stage 4 stomach cancer life expectancy is always very low compared to cancer in early stages. In most of the cases, if the cancer cannot be cured or treated, it is referred to as advanced or terminal cancer.
Metastatic gastric cancer prognosis
In Stage IV, the stomach cancer spreads to organs which are far away from the stomach such as the liver, lungs, brain, or bones. In such cases, it is referred to as a metastatic stomach cancer. Metastatic stomach cancer life expectancy is estimated to be less than 5% for five years. Metastatic stomach cancer is not curable and the treatment is also not very effective. Therefore, the main objective of the treatment is to lengthen a patient’s life and reduce the symptoms which cause discomfort.
In 1940s, stomach cancer was supposed to be one of the leading causes of death in the United States, but now the prognosis has improved. Early diagnosis techniques and preventive approaches have proved to be beneficial. Even after the treatment, there are always chances of the cancer coming back. Therefore, regular follow-ups or routine checkups are recommended to the patient.