Stage 4 Lung Cancer Survival Statistics

If you or someone close to you has been diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer, one of the first questions that comes to mind will be "What is the life expectancy for stage 4 lung cancer?" . Many people have various ideas about stage 4 cancers being unfavorable, but little is known about what this actually means.

People suddenly learning that they have stage 4 lung cancer are not alone. Approximately 2.1 million lung cancers are diagnosed worldwide each year, and around % 40 are diagnosed at stage 4. A cancer being stage 4 means its cells have metastasized (spread) to neighboring or distant tissues. For example, lung cancer tends to metastasize to the bones, liver, brain and opposite lung.

Survival Rates in Stage-4 Lung Cancer

Before discussing all the facts and figures, it is important to note a few things. First, everyone is different - many variables can affect lung cancer survival. Second, the lung cancer survival statistics below contain data from several years ago. Around 5-10 is needed for data on newly introduced treatments to mature.

Life expectancy in stage 4 lung cancer can vary considerably between people even with the same type of lung cancer. Let us examine these variables in more detail.

Lung Cancer Subtype and Location

Lung cancer has many subtypes with different biological characteristics. Stage 4 lung cancer can also, in terms of disease spread, be broadly divided into oligometastatic (spread to only one region) or widely metastatic disease, roughly two groups.

Survival can also be affected by the tumor's genetic characteristics. For example, patients with targetable mutations such as ALK-positive lung cancer, ROS1 mutations and EGFR mutations, with stage 4 lung cancer, have more treatment options. Patients whose tests show high tumor mutation levels also tend to respond better to immunotherapy drugs.

Age: In general, younger patients with lung cancer have a longer life expectancy. Lung cancer in young adults is actually different in many respects.

Sex: A woman with lung cancer has a higher life expectancy at every stage of the disease. However, for the first time in history, lung cancer incidence in a certain age group in the United States has surpassed that in men among women.

Related topic: Lung cancer in women - characteristics, differences and treatment

General health: Being generally healthy at diagnosis is associated with longer life expectancy and a greater ability to withstand treatments that may extend survival.

Response to treatment: Both the effectiveness and adverse effects of treatments such as chemotherapy, lung cancer surgery, targeted therapies, immunotherapy and radiotherapy vary between people, and individual differences can limit your ability to tolerate treatment. Also, in patients with stage 4 cancer, tumor cells tend over time to develop resistance to radiotherapy, chemotherapies, targeted drugs and immunotherapies. The time people take to develop treatment resistance can also differ.

Other health conditions Health conditions such as emphysema may reduce life expectancy in stage 4 lung cancer.

Complications (problems that may develop due to cancer) Complications such as thrombosis (blood clots) may reduce life expectancy in stage 4 lung cancer.

To Which Organs Does Lung Cancer Metastasize?

Lung cancer can spread to almost any part of the body, but most often to the brain, bones, liver and adrenal glands. If lung cancer metastasizes to only one or two sites, such as a bone or adrenal gland (oligometastasis), life expectancy may be longer.

A Look at Lung Cancer Statistics

It is important to understand how cancer statistics are compiled. For example, lung cancer survival statistics for 2018 concern patients diagnosed up to 2014. Since then, new treatments have been approved for people with advanced lung cancer, and more treatment options are being tested in clinical trials.

For stage 4 non-small cell lung cancer, median life expectancy - the time at which 50 percent of patients remain alive and 50 percent have died - is only approximately eight months. The five-year survival rate - the percentage of people expected to be alive five years after a stage 4 lung cancer diagnosis - is only 4 percent (US statistics).

The numbers may seem very low, but today many people with stage 4 lung cancer survive for a long time. Remember, life is not a statistic. There is hope, and provided it is realistic, this is not false hope.

When Lung Cancer Metastasizes

The most important point to remember is this: stage 4 lung cancer generally cannot be completely cured, but it can be treated. These treatments may not only extend lifespan and improve quality of life but also help reduce symptoms associated with lung cancer.

FDA approvals of various immunotherapies after 2015 suggest that long-term control of advanced lung cancer may be possible for some patients. Also, for targeted mutations, switching to newly developed drugs when tumors become resistant - an increase in targeted drug options - suggests that advanced lung cancer may one day be treated as a chronic disease like diabetes.

Another development for stage 4 lung cancer is the treatment of oligometastatic disease. For example, if there are one or a few metastases in the brain or liver, techniques such as stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) may be used to eliminate them. This radiotherapy technique has provided long-term survival for some lung cancer patients with brain metastases.

Lifespan / Survival Improvement

Thanks to developments over many years, options for treating lung cancer and personalizing treatment have increased exponentially. Of course, unless you are a physician specializing in cancer - and even if you are, keeping up with the pace of scientific advances has become very difficult - it is hard to be aware of every new scientific study or clinical trial conducted around the world.

Studies suggest that patients with greater awareness, who learn a great deal about cancer and actively participate in their own cancer treatment, may have better outcomes. A good way both to obtain support and learn about the latest treatments is to follow reliable websites or join lung cancer support groups.

In addition, the ideal way to access new cancer treatments is to participate in cancer clinical trials. In our country too, the importance of clinical trials is being better understood each day, and these studies are becoming more widespread. Finally, remember that smoking is unquestionably the most important cause of lung cancer; if you smoke, seek support to quit and ask clinics experienced in this field about your eligibility for lung cancer early detection screening.

Topics You May Be Interested In:

What Is Metastasis? Why Does Cancer Metastasize? (Detailed Explanation)

Lung Cancer Symptoms, Diagnosis and Treatment (Detailed Explanation)

Adverse Effects of Cancer and Its Treatment

Radiotherapy and Radiation Treatment