What is the survival rate of lung cancer?

Question by Your Opinion Matters: What is the survival rate of lung cancer?
I know that it is based mostly on the 5-year survival rate of 14 percent, but I believe that must mostly be because most people don’t find out until it’s in its later stages.

My friend is 18 and just found out he has lung cancer. He’s going in for more tests to confirm what stage it is in but it can’t be that far along I’m guessing with how young he is. Do you have any information as to the survival rate of those in the preliminary stages of lung cancer? What are the chances of eradicating it?

Best answer:

Answer by Travelingman
The best thing is to go to the source … the type of “lung cancer” as well as when it was diagnosed are major factors, and then one has to consider life style, nutrition, etc. There are two general types of lung cancer, “small cell” and “non-small cell”.

“… In general, the lung cancer survival rate will depend on:

•The stage of lung cancer (see Lung Cancer Stages)
•The lung cancer type (see Types of Lung Cancer)
•Whether there are symptoms (such as coughing or trouble breathing)
•The patient’s general health
•Whether the cancer has just been diagnosed or has recurred (come back)…”

In simple words … there is no one statistic for the “survival rate of lung cancer” that explains everything. Check with your oncologist and if need be get a second opinion (always a good idea under any circumstances) and read the literature on your particular form of cancer and what stage it is in … then a probable “survival rate” can be determined, as close as is possible given our current level of medical understanding.

Sorry it is impossible to be more specific given the information provided … Good Luck and I sincerely hope everything turns out well …

Add your own answer in the comments!