Lung cancer is the 3rd most common cancer diagnosed in the United States, after breast cancer and prostate cancer. However, it is the single most common cause of deaths from cancer, responsible for one out of every five deaths from cancer. Unfortunately, the outlook for patients with lung cancer is often poor; according to the National Cancer Institute, for every 4 patients diagnosed with lung cancer 5 years ago, only 1 would be alive today1
How common is lung cancer?
These statistics apply for all patients with lung cancer. But the outlook (or “prognosis” as healthcare providers sometimes call it) for an individual patient depends on a lot of factors specific to that patient and that cancer. For example, the type of lung cancer (that is, what type of cell did the cancer first grow from) differ from one another in how fast they grow, how likely they are to spread to other areas of the body, and how they respond to different treatments. How far the cancer has spread is another factor in a patient’s outlook. More than half of patients are diagnosed with lung cancer when their cancer has already spread to distant parts of the body.1 At this stage, the cancer is more difficult to treat, and the chances for a patient’s survival are lower than the “average” patient with lung cancer. However, about 20% of patients are diagnosed when their tumor is still localized to one place; these patients have a more favorable outlook compared to other lung cancer patients.1
Learn more about lung cancer
Learn about lung cancer
Signs and symptoms of lung cancer
Biomarker testing in lung cancer
- Cancer of the Lung and Bronchus - Cancer Stat Facts. Accessed November 11, 2024. https://seer.cancer.gov/statfacts/html/lungb.html