Chemotherapy for cancer is a powerful treatment that involves taking medications to damage cancerous cells. The goal is to prevent these cells from dividing and multiplying. Chemotherapy success rates and cancer survival rates can vary.
This article outlines the use of
We also give information about survival rates for people with these types of cancer, according to the stage of cancer when a person received the diagnosis.
There are a variety of factors that may affect how successful chemotherapy is and a person’s survival rate. These factors include:
Cancer survival rates
A survival rate refers to the percentage of people who live for a certain amount of time after a cancer diagnosis.
Survival rates can also help people gain an understanding of their outlook because they provide information about the likely outcomes of people with similar cancers.
However, it is essential to remember that a range of factors influences survival rates and chemotherapy success rates. Many of these factors vary from person to person.
Cancer grade
Cancer
Cancer stage
Cancer stage indicates how large a tumor is and how far its cells have spread. A doctor can use various systems to determine what stage a cancer has reached.
They may use the following
- Stage 0: Abnormal cells are present but have not spread to nearby cells.
- Stages 1, 2, and 3: Cancer is present. Higher stages indicate larger tumors and a more extensive spread into nearby tissues.
- Stage 4: The cancer has spread to other areas of the body.
Researchers who collect data to determine cancer statistics may use the following
- In situ: Abnormal cells are present but have not spread to nearby tissues.
- Localized: Cancer has not spread beyond the place where it first developed.
- Regional: Cancer has spread to nearby lymph nodes, tissues, or organs.
- Distant: Cancer has spread to distant parts of the body.
Other factors
Other factors that can affect the success of chemotherapy include:
- age
- overall health
- any other medical conditions
In this article, we describe the next steps when chemotherapy is not effective.
People may receive chemotherapy, or chemo, alongside other treatments, such as surgery and radiotherapy. This can make it difficult for researchers to determine which therapy has what effect.
As such, it is not possible to provide success rates for chemotherapy alone. The following examples show overall survival rates for people with different types of cancer, along with the percentage of those receiving chemotherapy as part of their treatment.
The statistics below are from the
This report uses 5-year relative survival rates, which describe the percentage of people who live for at least 5 years after their cancer diagnosis.
Some people may have a mastectomy, in which a surgeon removes the breast. Others may have breast conserving surgery (BCS), which involves removing the tumor and some of the surrounding healthy tissue.
Some people receive chemo with or instead of surgery.
The table below shows the percentages of females with breast cancer who undergo treatment involving chemotherapy, according to
Breast cancer stage | |||
Treatment choice | Stage 1 and 2 | Stage 3 | Stage 4 |
BCS plus chemo | 2% | 2% | 2% |
BCS plus radiotherapy and chemo | 17% | 15% | 2% |
Mastectomy plus chemo | 12% | 13% | 7% |
Mastectomy plus radiotherapy and chemo | 6% | 48% | 7% |
Radiotherapy and/or chemo without surgery | 1% | 4% | 48% |
Total | 38% | 82% | 66% |
Learn more about the stages of breast cancer here.
Breast cancer survival
The following table shows survival rates among females with breast cancer, depending on the stage at diagnosis.
Breast cancer stage | Localized | Regional | Distant |
% of people with this stage of cancer at diagnosis | 61% | 32% | 6% |
5-year relative survival rate | 99% | 85% | 26% |
This refers to cancer of the colon or rectum.
Surgical options for colorectal cancer include:
- Colectomy: removal of part or all of the colon.
- Proctectomy: removal of part or all of the rectum.
- Proctocolectomy: removal of the rectum and part or all of the colon.
Colon cancer
The table below shows the
Colon cancer stage | |||
Treatment choice | Stage 1 & 2 | Stage 3 | Stage 4 |
Colectomy and chemo | 10% | 67% | 40% |
Chemo alone | less than 1% | less than 1% | 26% |
Total | approx 11% | approx 68% | 66% |
Rectal cancer
The table below shows the percentages of people with rectal cancer who undergo treatment involving chemotherapy.
Rectal cancer stage | |||
Treatment choice | Stage 1 | Stage 2 & 3 | Stage 4 |
Tumor removal/destruction plus chemo and/or radiotherapy | 4% | 2% | 1% |
Proctectomy/proctocolectomy plus chemo and/or radiotherapy | 28% | 67% | 31% |
Chemo and/or radiotherapy without surgery | 4% | 13% | 49% |
Total | 46% | 82% | 80% |
Colorectal cancer survival
The following table gives
Colorectal cancer stage | Localized | Regional | Distant |
% of people with this stage of cancer at diagnosis | 39% | 36% | 20% |
5-year relative survival rate | 90% | 71% | 13% |
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma is a type of cancer that begins in cells called lymphocytes. These are immune system cells that help the body fight infection.
Around 69% of people with non-Hodgkin lymphoma receive chemo. Among them, 58% receive chemo alone, while 11% receive a combination of chemo and radiotherapy.
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma survival
The following table gives
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma stage | Localized | Regional | Distant |
% of people with this stage of cancer at diagnosis | 28% | 15% | 50% |
5-year relative survival rate | 82% | 74% | 62% |
There are two types of lung cancer: small-cell and non-small cell (NSCLC).
Around
Approximately 83% of lung cancers are NSCLC. The remaining 3% are undefined.
The table below gives
NSCLC lung cancer stage | ||
Treatment choice | Early stage (1 & 2) | Late stage (3 & 4) |
Surgery plus chemo and/or radiotherapy | 16% | 7% |
Chemo alone | 1% | 18% |
Chemo plus radiotherapy without surgery | 6% | 35% |
Total | 24% | 60% |
Lung cancer survival
The following table shows survival rates for people with NSCLC lung cancer, according to the stage at diagnosis.
NSCLC lung cancer stage | Localized | Regional | Distant |
% of people with this stage of cancer at diagnosis | 16% | 22% | 57% |
5-year relative survival rate | 55% | 27% | 4% |
Testicular cancer is cancer in one or both testicles. Around 97% of testicular cancers begin in the germ cells. These are cells that develop into sperm.
Tumors that develop from germ cells are called testicular germ cell tumors. There are two types: seminomatous tumors, which tend to be slow-growing, and non-seminomatous tumors, which usually grow more rapidly.
Seminomatous tumors
The table below shows the
Seminomatous tumor stage | ||
Treatment choice | Early stage (1 & 2) | Late stage (3 & 4) |
Surgery plus chemo | 22% | 66% |
Surgery plus chemo and radiotherapy | less than 1% | 4% |
Chemo and/or radiotherapy without surgery | 1% | 21% |
Total | approx. 24% | 91% |
Nonseminomatous tumors
The table below shows the percentages of males who undergo treatment involving chemotherapy for early or late stage nonseminomatous testicular germ cell tumors.
We also show the percentage of those who undergo a procedure called retroperitoneal lymph node dissection (RPLND).
Nonseminomatous tumor stage | ||
Treatment choice | Early stage (1 & 2) | Late stage (3 & 4) |
Surgery and chemo | 35% | 67% |
Surgery, chemo, and RPLND | 9% | 18% |
Chemo and/or radiotherapy without surgery | less than 1% | 8% |
Total | approx. 45% | 93% |
Testicular cancer survival
The following table shows information about survival rates for males with testicular cancer, according to its stage at diagnosis. These figures combine data from people with either type of tumor.
Testicular cancer stage | Localized | Regional | Distant |
% of people with this stage of cancer at diagnosis | 68% | 18% | 12% |
5-year relative survival rate | 99% | 96% | 74% |
Learn more about testicular cancer here.
Most people with bladder cancer receive one of the following
Transurethral resection of the bladder tumor, a minimally invasive procedure that involves removing the bladder tumor via the urethra.
Cystectomy, which involves removing part or all of the bladder, as well as the surrounding fatty tissue and lymph nodes.
About
- 20% undergo cystectomy plus chemo, radiotherapy, or both
- 20% undergo transurethral resection plus chemo or radiotherapy
- 9% undergo transurethral resection plus chemo and radiotherapy
- 3% undergo chemo, radiotherapy, or both, but no surgery
Bladder cancer survival
The 5-year relative survival rate for localized bladder cancer varies by the type of cancer. Around 25% of bladder cancers invade the muscle wall of the bladder.
The 5-year relative survival rate is 47% for localized, muscle-invasive bladder cancer, and 81% for localized bladder cancer that is not muscle-invasive.
The following table shows
Bladder cancer stage | In situ | Localized | Regional | Distant |
% of people with this stage of cancer at diagnosis | 51% | 35% | 7% | 4% |
5-year relative survival rate | 96% | 70% | 34% | 5% |
More than
The table below shows the percentages of women who undergo treatment involving chemotherapy for uterine corpus cancer by stage.
Uterine corpus cancer stage | ||
Treatment choice | Early stage (1 & 2) | Late stage (3 & 4) |
Surgery plus chemo | 5% | 33% |
Surgery plus chemo and radiotherapy | 6% | 28% |
Chemo and/or radiotherapy without surgery | 1% | 12% |
Total | 12% | 73% |
Uterine corpus cancer survival
The following table shows
UCC stage | Localized | Regional | Distant |
% of people with this stage of cancer at diagnosis | 67% | 21% | 8% |
5-year relative survival rate | 95% | 68% | 17% |
Uterine cancer is also called endometrial cancer. Learn more here.
Usually, people receive chemotherapy alongside other treatments. This makes it difficult to determine a person’s survival rate and success with chemotherapy alone.
Many other factors affect treatment success, including the type and stage of cancer, as well as personal characteristics, such as age and overall health.
Survival rates provide an estimate based on the outcomes of people with similar cancer diagnoses.
A doctor, especially an oncologist, can take all the relevant factors into account and give a better idea about a person’s outlook.