Survival
Survival depends on many different factors. It depends on your individual condition, type of neuroendocrine tumour (NET), treatment and level of fitness. So no one can tell you exactly how long you will live.
These are general statistics based on large groups of people. Remember, they can’t tell you what will happen in your individual case.
Your doctor can give you more information about your own outlook (prognosis).
About these statistics
The terms 1 year survival and 5 year survival don't mean that you will only live for 1 or 5 years.
The NHS, other health organisations, and researchers collect information. They watch what happens to people with cancer in the years after their diagnosis. 5 years is a common time point to measure survival. But some people live much longer than this.
5 year survival is the number of people who have not died from their cancer within 5 years after diagnosis.
Survival for small bowel NET
1 Year survival
The 1 year survival statistics below are for all stages of small bowel NETs in the UK.
- 90 out of 100 people (90%) survive for 1 year or more
These statistics are from a UK study, which included 2054 people diagnosed with small bowel NETs between 2013 and 2015.
Impact of neuroendocrine morphology on cancer outcomes and stage at diagnosis: a UK nationwide cohort study 2013–2015
T Genus and others
British Journal of Cancer (2019) Volume 121, pages 966–972
There are no UK-wide 5 year survival statistics available for large bowel and rectal NETs. The statistics below are from a European study. Please be aware that due to differences in health care systems, data collection and the population, these figures may not be a true picture of survival in the UK.
5 year survival
- Around 70 out of 100 people (around 70%) survive their cancer for 5 years or more
These statistics are from a European study which included 3660 people diagnosed with small bowel NETs. The patients came from different European countries (including the UK) and were diagnosed between 1995 and 2002.
The 5 year survival statistics are for people diagnosed between 2000 and 2002. The paper does not state how many patients this would be. But it should be large enough to create a reliable idea of survival in Europe.
Rare neuroendocrine tumours: Results of the surveillance of rare cancers in Europe project
J Maartaen Van de Zwan and others
European Journal of Cancer Volume 49, Issue 11 July 2013, Pages 2565-2578
These 5 year survival statistics are for relative survival. Relative survival takes into account that some people will die of causes other than cancer. This gives a more accurate picture of cancer survival.
What affects survival?
Survival depends on many factors. It depends on the stage and grade of the NET when it was diagnosed. The stage describes the size of the tumour and whether it has spread. The grade means how abnormal the cells look under a microscope.
It also depends on how well you are generally.
This page is due for review. We will update this as soon as possible.
