We humans are fascinated with statistics. In all aspects of life—politics, sports, the economy, healthcare—the numbers we come across can tell us the good, and the bad, in any given situation. When it comes to cancer facts and figures, most of the numbers we come across reflect the negative aspects of this disease, and rightfully so. But there are also some figures that can offer hope.
Take prostate cancer, for example—a focus of ours this Movember. Other than skin cancer, prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men.1 And it is number one in terms of new cases in men, at around 28% of new cancer diagnoses for men.2 Dig a bit deeper and we read that 1 in 7 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during his lifetime.1 This year alone, there will be approximately 220,000 new cases of prostate cancer in the U.S.1 Those are certainly sobering statistics.
But it’s all about perspective. While prostate cancer is the most common cancer in American men, it doesn’t have the highest mortality rate. More than 2.9 million men who have been diagnosed with prostate cancer are still alive.1
A closer look at the survival rates for prostate cancer reveals an even better prognosis. According to cancer.org, for all stages of prostate cancer:
- “The relative 5-year survival rate is almost 100%
- The relative 10-year survival rate is 99%
- The 15-year relative survival rate is 94%”
If you or someone you know has been diagnosed with prostate cancer, those survival statistics can be the light at the end of the tunnel. Finding the good among the bad is what keeps us going. It’s how we find the strength to fight.
1cancer.org/cancer/prostatecancer/index
2Siegel R, Naishadham D, Jemal A. Cancer statistics, 2013. CA Cancer J Clin. 2013;63(1):11-30.