People often equate cancer with death. This is not surprising as cancer is the Number One killer in Singapore, with heart diseases in second place. Out of 17,140 deaths reported in Singapore in 2007, 27.7% died of cancer while 19.8% died of heart diseases (source : Ministry of Health Singapore).
The good news is that with recent advances in cancer research, the survival rates for cancer have improved over the years.
Survival by stage
The 5-year survival rate refers to the percentage of patients who live at least 5 years after their cancer is diagnosed. Many of these patients live much longer than 5 years after diagnosis. 5-year rates are used to produce a standard way of discussing prognosis (chance of recovery). (http://www.cancer.org/)
Survival tends to worsen as the stage increases. The 5-year survival rates* for nose cancer patients in Singapore are believed to be as follows :
Stage 1 : 90-95%
Stage 2 : 80%
Stage 3 : 70%
Stage 4 : 50-60%
5-year survival rates are based on patients diagnosed and initially treated more than 5 years ago. So the statistics may no longer be accurate as improvements in cancer treatment may have resulted in a more favourable outlook for recently diagnosed patients.
No statistics can tell you what will happen to you. Your cancer is unique. The same type of cancer can grow at different rates in different people. Survival statistics are useful as a general guide, but they may not accurately represent any one person's prognosis. A number of other factors, including other tumour characteristics and a person's age and general health, can also affect the prognosis (chance of recovery).
References
* Figures obtained from talk given at NPC support group in Apr 2009.
Ministry of Health, Singapore
http://www.moh.gov.sg/mohcorp/statistics.aspx?id=5526
World Health Organisation
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs310/en/index.html
American Cancer Society
http://www.cancer.org/docroot/CRI/content/CRI_2_4_3X_How_is_nasal_cavity_and_paranasal_cancer_staged.asp
Cancer Research UK
http://www.cancerhelp.org.uk/help/default.asp?page=17370#stage
Thursday 18 June 2009
Saturday 13 June 2009
understanding nose cancer : grading
I did a nasal biopsy in Aug 2006. The histopathology report says : "undifferentiated carcinoma". Two years later in Dec 2008, I underwent a wedge resection (a cut) on my right lung. The histopathology report says : "metastatic undifferentiated nasopharyngeal carcinoma". Do you know the difference between "differentiated" and "undifferentiated" carcinoma? (carcinoma means malignant cancer)
Cancer terminology can be rather daunting to the non-medically trained. I like to share what I found out about cancer grading from the internet library. (http://www.cancerhelp.org.uk/)
The grade of a cancer tells you how much the cancer cells look like normal cells. There are 3 grades of nose cancer.
In "undifferentiated cancer", the cancer cells are very immature and "primitive" and do not look like cells in the tissue from which it arose. As a rule, an undifferentiated cancer is more malignant than a cancer of that type which is well differentiated. Undifferentiated cells are said to be anaplastic. This is a cancer which does not appear to resemble the tissue of origin.
Differentiated cancers tend to be decidedly less aggressive than undifferentiated cancers. But undifferentiated cancer is known to respond better to radiotherapy and chemotherapy.
The grade of the cancer gives your oncologist a guide as to how the cancer is likely to behave. Low grade cancers are usually slower growing and less likely to spread. High grade cancers are likely to be faster growing and are more likely to spread. And undifferentiated cancers often grow & spread quickly.
This is only a guide. Your oncologist will consider all your test results when deciding which treatment is best for you.
References
Cancer Research UK
http://www.cancerhelp.org.uk/help/default.asp?page=13830#grade
MedicineNet
http://www.medterms.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=20476
Cancer terminology can be rather daunting to the non-medically trained. I like to share what I found out about cancer grading from the internet library. (http://www.cancerhelp.org.uk/)
The grade of a cancer tells you how much the cancer cells look like normal cells. There are 3 grades of nose cancer.
- Grade 1 (low grade) – the cancer cells look very much like the normal nasal cavity cells
- Grade 2 (intermediate grade) – the cancer cells look slightly like normal nasal cavity cells
- Grade 3 (high grade) – the cancer cells look very abnormal and very little like normal nasal cavity cells
In "undifferentiated cancer", the cancer cells are very immature and "primitive" and do not look like cells in the tissue from which it arose. As a rule, an undifferentiated cancer is more malignant than a cancer of that type which is well differentiated. Undifferentiated cells are said to be anaplastic. This is a cancer which does not appear to resemble the tissue of origin.
Differentiated cancers tend to be decidedly less aggressive than undifferentiated cancers. But undifferentiated cancer is known to respond better to radiotherapy and chemotherapy.
The grade of the cancer gives your oncologist a guide as to how the cancer is likely to behave. Low grade cancers are usually slower growing and less likely to spread. High grade cancers are likely to be faster growing and are more likely to spread. And undifferentiated cancers often grow & spread quickly.
This is only a guide. Your oncologist will consider all your test results when deciding which treatment is best for you.
References
Cancer Research UK
http://www.cancerhelp.org.uk/help/default.asp?page=13830#grade
MedicineNet
http://www.medterms.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=20476
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)