5-year cancer survival

Published

29 Jun, 2020

Cancer survival is defined by the percentage of people still alive for a set period of time after being diagnosed with cancer. Five-year survival is the most common definition and refers to the chance of living for five years or more after being diagnosed. Survival improves when cancers are detected early – before they spread to other parts of the body – and when there are improvements in treatment that help people with cancer live longer.¹

This section provides a detailed summary of cancer survival five years following diagnosis in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Data are provided for an overall picture. Survival for an individual may be higher or lower depending on various factors.

Summary

Cancer survival (chances of living after diagnosis) in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people Almost half of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people (45%) survived for five years or longer after their cancer diagnosis in 2010–2014. 

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5-year survial

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Notes

• Data sourced from AIHW Cancer Database 2014.
• Data are for NSW, Qld, WA and NT, and for Vic from 2008 only. The period reported does not contain data for 2014 for NSW because those data were not available.
• Error bars represent 95% confidence intervals.
• When presenting data of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people we will be respectfully using the term Indigenous Australians.

5-year observed survival rate for selected cancers and all cancers combined in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, by sex, 2010–2014

About this measure

Survival from cancer is dependent on various factors, including: demographics, the type of tumour, the stage of the cancer at diagnosis, other risk factors, and the availability of treatment. Cancer survival is the percentage of people still alive for a set period of time after being diagnosed with cancer (observed survival). It is commonly described as the chance of living for five (or ten) years or more after being diagnosed.^1,2

All Australian states and territories have law that requires the reporting of cancer. Various organisations – such as hospitals, pathology laboratories and registries of births, deaths and marriages – are required to report cancer and cancer deaths to the relevant state or territory cancer registry.

Cancer survival statistics are made available by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) for individual cancer types and cancer groupings. These cancer types and cancer groupings are divided using the 10th revision of the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD-10).¹

For a comparison with the broader Australian community see the NCCI '5-year relative survival'.

Current status

Cancer survival (chances of living after diagnosis) in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, by sex

Almost half of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people (45%) survived for five years or longer after a cancer diagnosis in 2010–2014.
Survival was poorer for males (40%) than females (50%).

Cancer survival (chances of living after diagnosis) in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, by sex and type

Survival was best for melanoma, breast cancer in females and prostate cancer in males. About three-quarters of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people with one of these cancer types lived for five years or longer after their cancer diagnosis.
Survival was poorest for cancers of the lung in males and females. Less than 10% of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people with lung cancer lived five years or longer after their cancer diagnosis.

Trends

Data are collected over time to monitor change in survival from year to year. This information is provided to assist decision-makers to design prevention, policies and programs to improve cancer outcomes.

Due to gaps in existing sources, information collected is not always comparable across years. This section will be updated when improved data become available.

About the data

Methodology:

Cancer survival is the percentage of people still alive for a set period of time after being diagnosed with cancer (observed survival). It is commonly described as the chance of living for five (or ten) years or more after being diagnosed.^1,2 For example, if 6 in 10 people with cancer are alive 5 years after their diagnosis, observed survival would be 0.6 or 60%.

Table 1 presents relevant ICD-10 codes for all cancers combined and individual cancer types reported in this analysis.

Table 1. ICD codes for all cancers combined and individual cancer types

Cancer site/type	ICD-10 codes
All cancers combined	C00-C97, D45-D46, D47.1, D47.3-D47.5, except for basal and squamous cell carcinomas of the skin which are part of C44
Bladder	C67
Brain	C71
Breast in females	C50
Cancer of unknown primary site	C80
Cervix	C53
Colon	C18
Colorectal	C18-20
Head and neck (including lip)	C00-C14, C30-C32
Liver	C22
Lung	C33-C34
Melanoma of the skin	C43
Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma	C82-C86
Oesophageal	C15
Ovary	C56
Pancreas	C25
Prostate	C61
Rectum	C19-C20
Uterus	C54-C55

Data source:

All Australian states and territories have law that requires the reporting of cancer. Various organisations – such as hospitals, pathology laboratories and registries of births, deaths and marriages – are required to report cancer and cancer deaths to the relevant state or territory cancer registry.
Cancer survival statistics are made available by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) for individual cancer types and cancer groupings. These cancer types and cancer groupings are divided using the 10th revision of the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD-10).¹

Data caveats:

All cancers combined include ICD-10 codes C00-C97, D45-D46, D47.1, D47.3-D47.5, except basal and squamous cell carcinomas of the skin which are part of C44.
The period reported does not contain data for 2014 for NSW because those data were not available
Data are for NSW, Qld, WA and NT, and for Vic from 2008 only. The information on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander status in these jurisdictions is considered to be of sufficient completeness for reporting.³

References

Activity in this area

Data:

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2018. Australian Cancer Database 2014. Canberra: AIHW.

Policy:

Australian Government Department of Health. National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Plan 2013–2023. Available from: https://www1.health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/Content/natsih-p... (accessed June 2020)

References

1. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2019. Cancer in Australia 2019. Cancer series no.119. Cat. no. CAN 122. Canberra: AIHW.

2. National Cancer Institute. Population-based Cancer Survival Statistics Overview. Bethesda: NCI; 2020; Available at: https://surveillance.cancer.gov/survival/ (accessed February 2020)

3. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2017. Australian Cancer Database 2014 – Quality Statement; Available at: https://meteor.aihw.gov.au/content/index.phtml/itemId/687104 (accessed June 2020)

Revision Type

Major

Version Number

1.0.0

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Summary

Cancer survival (chances of living after diagnosis) in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people

Data