Lung and bronchus cancers have the lowest five-year survival rate, according to the NIH National Cancer Institute's "Cancer Trends Progress Report."
The report includes data measures and trends related to cancer prevention, early detection, diagnosis, treatment, life after diagnosis and end of life.
According to the report, survival rate is measured as the five-year relative cancer survival. This number is defined as the proportion of patients surviving cancer five years after diagnosis, calculated in the absence of other causes of death. The relative survival ratio takes the observed survival number in the patient group and divides it by the expected survival of a comparable group in the general population.
Here are three things to know about cancer survival in the U.S.:
- The overall five-year relative survival rate was 71.7. The rate was higher for women (73.4) and lower for men (70.1).
- The five-year survival rate was highest among the non-Hispanic White population (69.8), followed by Hispanic (67.3). The non-Hispanic Black population had the lowest five-year survival rate (65.3).
- The five-year survival rate among the top four cancer sites between 1975 and 2022 were as follows: female breast (93.1), prostate (98.1), lung and bronchus (28.0), and colon and rectum (68.9).
Read the report's findings on cancer incidence here and mortality rate here.