Prognosis is a medical term that refers to the description of the likely outcome related to an illness or disease. It gives an estimate of a patient’s survival rate. Breast cancer survival rate is based on many factors of the cancer. The type of cancer, treatment options, lifestyle and habits, as well as genetics play important roles in breast cancer survival.
Breast cancer survival rate may be based on a standard five-year survival rate which estimates a patient’s prognosis through statistical data. The five year survival rate is the average number of patients who exceed the 5 year survival measure after being diagnosed. Five year survival rates exclude patients who die from other causes. A good number of breast cancer patients live much longer than 5 years after diagnosis. Although logically, the greater the cancer stage, the lesser the breast cancer survival rate.
Averaging of survival rates are based on statistics from patients treated several years ago. Although, the patients used in statistical data are the most recent available figures, there may have been improvements in treatment thus survival rates may be a little greater.