In cancer care, “survival rate” usually means the percentage of people expected to survive their cancer for at least five years from the time it was diagnosed. Data experts estimate this rate based on information about large groups of people with the same type of cancer. The rate doesn’t include the risk of dying during those five years for some other reason.
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Kidney Cancer Survival Rates
Because most patients are diagnosed when the tumor is still relatively localized and suitable for surgical removal, approximately 75% of all patients with renal cell carcinoma (RCC), the most common type of kidney cancer, survive for 5 years, according to the National Cancer Institute.
But the chance of surviving kidney cancer for five years or more can be quite different from person to person. One important reason is the stage of the disease at the time of diagnosis. For localized (confined to the kidney) kidney cancer, the relative five-year survival rate in the U.S. is 93%, according to the National Cancer Institute. Even within a subset of people, like those with localized disease, there will be differences. Patients may have different treatments and respond to treatments in different ways.
This means it’s impossible to predict the likely lifespan of any one person based on survival rates. If you would like to know more about the outlook for your disease, talk with your Fred Hutch Cancer Center care team. They can tell you more based on your unique situation.