“How Long Can I Live With Mesothelioma?”
This question is commonly asked by those who have been diagnosed with mesothelioma, a deadly form of cancer caused by asbestos. Unfortunately, as with most diseases, there is no one answer to how long a mesothelioma patient will live.
Mesothelioma Survival Rates
6 months after diagnosis55%1 year after diagnosis33%5 years after diagnosis9%
Survival Rates for Mesothelioma Are Improving
The good news is that survival rates for mesothelioma patients are improving. A 2015 meta-study looked at 20 years worth of results from 1992 – 2012, and during that period the two major forms of mesothelioma (pleural and peritoneal) have both seen an improvement in survivorship.
Mesothelioma Survival Rate by Type
PleuralPeritonealPericardial1 year73%92%51%3 years3%74%26%5 years12%65%23%10 years4.7%39%(N/A)
According to the study, peritoneal mesothelioma survivorship has especially shown significant improvement, largely due tonew forms of treatment, such as hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC).
The Effect of Treatment on Survival
The type of treatment a mesothelioma patient receives can affect survival rates. Whether this is due to the treatment itself or to other factors (e.g., if the patient is too ill to undergo a more aggressive treatment) may not always be apparent. While there has been no single study showing survival rates based on treatment across all types of mesothelioma, separate studies have been done on the two most common forms of mesothelioma.
Mesothelioma Survival Rate by Treatment TypePleural MesotheliomaChemotherapy Only2 years19%5 years4%Pleurectomy / Decortication (P/D)2 years40%5 years10%Extrapleural Pneumonectomy (EPP)2 years37%5 years12%Peritoneal MesotheliomaCRS-207 + Hyperthermic Intraperitoneal Chemotherapy (HIPEC)5 years50%For pleural mesothelioma, patients who undergo a pleurectomy/decortication (P/D) or extrapleural pneumonectomy (EPP) – both of which are usually part of a multimodal treatment plan – generally have a much higher rate of survival than those who receive chemotherapy alone.
For peritoneal mesothelioma, patients who undergo cytoreductive surgery (CRS) with HIPEC have significantly higher rates of survival. When combined with systemic chemotherapy as an adjuvant treatment, the 5-year survival rate of patients who undergo CRS + HIPEC can be as high as 67%.
Other Survival Rate Factors
The survival rate for mesothelioma patients depend on a variety of factors. These include things such as the patient’s age, health, and the treatment they receive. Ever individual case is different, and one survival rate may not necessarily apply to a specific patient’s case.
Stage at Diagnosis
Mesothelioma staging can impact survival rate significantly. Patients diagnosed at an early stage (Stage I or Stage II) have a much higher survival rate than those diagnosed at a later stage (Stage III or Stage IV). For example, the 5-year survival rate for Stage 1 peritoneal mesothelioma patients is 87 percent, but only 29 percent for Stage IV.
Age of the Patient
Younger mesothelioma patients have higher rates of survival than older patients. This is due in part to the fact that older people in general have lower survival rates. In addition, with age comes a variety of health-related conditions that can make a mesothelioma diagnosis more deadly.
Sex
According to data provided by the National Cancer Institute’s SEER database, women have a higher 5-year survival rate (16%) than men (9.3%). It is not entirely clear why this is so, though some reasons may include that women are generally diagnosed at a younger age, they are more likely to get regular medical checkups, and they may be in better overall health.
Race
There is some evidence that African-Americans who have mesothelioma have a slightly longer 5-year survival rate than Caucasian mesothelioma patients. However, because Caucasians have a much higher incidence of mesothelioma, there may not be enough cases of African-Americans who have the disease to make a substantive determination.
Genetics
Several studies have shown that certain genetic factors can affect survival rates among patients. For example, mesothelioma patients who have certain mutations of BRCA1-associated protein-1 (BAP1) appear to have much better survival rates than other individuals who develop the disease, according to one study.
Top Mesothelioma Surgeons in the Country
David Sugarbaker, M.D.
Professor of Surgery, Chief of General Thoracic Surgery, Director of the Lung Institute
Baylor College of Medicine
Raphael Bueno, M.D.
Chief, Division of Thoracic Surgery; Vice Chair of Surgery for Cancer and Translational Research
Brigham and Women's HospitalA Note About Mesothelioma Survival Rate Statistics
Mesothelioma survival rates are determined by a standard measure known as the relative 5-year survival rate, which indicates how many patients are still alive 5 years after being diagnosed with the disease.
According to the most reliable studies, the relative 5-year survival rate for mesothelioma is about 9 percent, which is better than it was a decade or more ago. However, this simplified number does not tell the whole story. As shown above, survival rate can depend heavily on the type of mesothelioma a person has, what treatment options are available to them, and certain other health and lifestyle factors.
Many different clinical trials and other studies are being conducted on an ongoing basis to identify the factors that affect survival rate and, hopefully, discover ways to increase survival among mesothelioma patients. The results of these studies can be helpful for patients who meet certain criteria, but they may not be useful for determining an overall survival rate across the broad spectrum of mesothelioma patients.
Therefore, while survival rate can be a useful statistic in some cases, it can be misleading in others. Patients and loved ones should always rely on the advice and guidance provided by their doctors to understand how they can improve their prognosis and life expectancy, rather than looking to a single statistic.
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