The 5-year mesothelioma survival rate is 15%. Survival rates vary by the type of mesothelioma cancer that you have, how your body responds to treatment, and more. We can help you get care that may allow you to live longer than the expected mesothelioma survival rate.
What Is the Survival Rate of Mesothelioma?
Survival rate refers to the number of mesothelioma patients still living after a set amount of time. It’s typically measured in years. Mesothelioma has unfavorable long-term survival rates compared to some other cancers, but you could still live a long time with treatment.
Here’s what to know about mesothelioma survival rates:
- The overall 5-year survival rate for mesothelioma is 15%.
- Pleural mesothelioma has a 1-year survival rate of 43.5%.
- Peritoneal mesothelioma has a 1-year survival rate of 91.6%.
Your doctor can explain your mesothelioma prognosis (expected health outlook). It’s important to remember that many veterans and civilians have surpassed the average survival rates to become long-term survivors.
Get a Free Veterans Packet to learn more about mesothelioma survival rates and health care options that may help you live longer.
Factors Affecting Mesothelioma Survival Rates
Cancer spread, your overall health, and which treatments you get all affect malignant mesothelioma survival rates. View notable factors and see how they may apply to your case below.
Type of Mesothelioma
Mesothelioma is classified into one of four types depending on where it forms in the body. Some types of mesothelioma are easier to treat, meaning patients may have better survival rates.
Here are survival rates by mesothelioma type:
- Pleural mesothelioma forms in the lining of the lungs and has a 5-year survival rate of 15%.
- Peritoneal mesothelioma develops in the lining of the abdomen and the 5-year survival rate is 47%.
- Pericardial mesothelioma affects the lining of the heart and has a 5-year survival rate of 9%.
- Testicular mesothelioma forms in the testicle lining and its 5-year survival rate is 49%.
Most veterans develop pleural mesothelioma, as this is the most common type. Veterans can get care for any type of mesothelioma through the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and from civilian doctors to hopefully live longer.
Mesothelioma Survival Rate by Stage
There are four mesothelioma stages. Early stages of mesothelioma (1 and 2) have higher survival rates than later stages (3 and 4) since they’re easier to treat.
| Stage | 1-Year Survival Rate | 5-Year Survival Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Stage 1 mesothelioma survival rate | 50.5% | 5.3% |
| Stage 2-3 mesothelioma survival rate | 42.8% | 3.0% |
| Stage 4 mesothelioma survival rate | 36.9% | 4.9% |
Source: ASCO Journal of Clinical Oncology (2024)
Call (877) 450-8973 now for help finding treatment options that may improve your mesothelioma survival rate, no matter your type.
Survival Rates by Mesothelioma Cell Type
Cell type refers to the cancer cells found in a mesothelioma tumor. The three main mesothelioma cell types are epithelioid, sarcomatoid, and biphasic.
Here are survival rates for each cell type:
- Epithelioid mesothelioma: The 2-year survival rate is 45% and the 5-year survival rate is 14%.
- Sarcomatoid mesothelioma: The 2-year survival rate is 15% and the 5-year rate is 4%.
- Biphasic mesothelioma: This type has a 22% 2-year survival rate and a 5-year survival rate of 5%.
Epithelioid mesothelioma has the best survival rate since doctors can more easily treat this type compared to the others. However, you could live longer with any type depending on the treatments you receive.
Sex
Women tend to live longer than men after a mesothelioma diagnosis. Women with mesothelioma had a 5-year survival rate of 19.4%, according to the National Cancer Institute’s Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) program. Men had a 5-year rate of 8.4%, or less than half.
Higher estrogen levels and lower rates of asbestos exposure (the only known cause of mesothelioma) may explain why women have better survival rates.
Age
Younger patients have better survival rates for mesothelioma. This is partly because they’re usually in better general health and can undergo aggressive treatments.
Here are 5-year mesothelioma survival rates by age group:
- 50 and younger: 40.7%
- 50-64: 16.2%
- 65 and older: 6.8%
- All ages: 11.2%
Source: National Cancer Institute SEER program
Most patients are diagnosed with mesothelioma at the age of 65 or older, leading to lower survival times. That said, every patient is different and you may live longer than the average person.
Race
The NCI’s SEER program found that white Americans had lower mesothelioma survival rates than many other races.
The 5-year mesothelioma survival rates by race include:
- Asian/pacific islander: 13.2%
- Black: 15.8%
- Hispanic: 13.5%
- White: 10.4%
Nearly 92% of mesothelioma patients are white, according to ASCO Journal of Clinical Oncology. White Americans worked in industries that relied on asbestos more often than other races, which could explain why these patients are more likely to be affected by mesothelioma.
Pleural Mesothelioma Survival Rates
Malignant pleural mesothelioma has less favorable survival rates, with fewer than half of all patients living 1 year after a diagnosis. Still, doctors can recommend treatments like surgery, chemotherapy, and immunotherapy to help pleural mesothelioma patients live longer.
Malignant pleural mesothelioma survival rates include:
- 1-year survival rate: 43.5%
- 2-year survival rate: 23.6%
- 5-year survival rate: 15%
In rare cases, some pleural mesothelioma patients have gone on to live for many years depending on how their body has responded to treatment. For example, U.S. Army veteran Ernie Conry lived for 7 years with this cancer. “Don’t let the cancer bog you down,” he said. “If you’re still moving, by God, keep moving.”
Peritoneal Mesothelioma Survival Rates
Malignant peritoneal mesothelioma has very favorable survival rates since doctors can often treat this cancer using surgery and chemotherapy. While long-term survival is not guaranteed, it is more likely if you have peritoneal mesothelioma compared to some of the other types.
Here are peritoneal mesothelioma cancer survival rates:
- 1-year survival rate: 91.6%
- 5-year survival rate: 80%
Julie Gundlach is one of a growing number of peritoneal mesothelioma survivors. Diagnosed when she was in her mid-30s, she was given a terminal prognosis. However, thanks to treatment, she is approaching 20 years of survivorship. “Keep the faith and keep putting one foot in front of the other,” she says.
Pericardial Mesothelioma Survival Rates
Malignant pericardial mesothelioma is a very rare type that forms in the heart lining. It has the least favorable long-term survival rates since it’s hard to diagnose and treat.
The 1-year survival rate for pericardial mesothelioma is 22%, according to Advances in Anatomic Pathology. The 5-year survival rate is 9%.
Testicular Mesothelioma Survival Rates
Testicular mesothelioma is the rarest type, developing in the testicle lining. However, doctors have effective treatments for this type, so patients have encouraging survival rates.
The 5-year survival rate for testicular mesothelioma is 49% and the 10-year survival rate is 33%, as noted in Urology.
Mesothelioma Survival Rates and Treatment
Getting treatment is one of your best options to potentially outlive mesothelioma survival rates. Find out about top mesothelioma treatments that can kill cancer and help you live longer below.
Mesothelioma Survival Rate After Surgery
Different mesothelioma surgeries can greatly improve survival rates, since they allow doctors to take out all visible cancer tumors.
Here are mesothelioma survival rates for top surgeries:
- Cytoreductive surgery with HIPEC treats peritoneal mesothelioma by removing abdominal tumors and then applying chemotherapy. The 2-year survival rate is 91.6% and the 5-year survival rate is 80%.
- Extrapleural pneumonectomy (EPP) treats pleural mesothelioma by removing a lung, the lung lining, and cancer tumors. The 1-year survival rate is 82% and the 5-year survival rate is 24%.
- Pleurectomy with decortication (P/D) treats pleural mesothelioma by removing the lung lining and tumors but sparing both lungs. The 2-year survival rate is 70%, as noted by the Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery.
Doctors typically use surgeries for early-stage mesothelioma cancer patients since the tumors are contained to one part of the body.
Get a Free Veterans Packet to learn more about surgeries and other treatments that could potentially improve your mesothelioma survival rate.
Mesothelioma Survival Rates for Other Treatments
In addition to surgery, many other treatments can help improve mesothelioma survival rates by shrinking tumors and killing malignant cells.
Survival rates for other mesothelioma treatments include:
- Chemotherapy destroys cancer cells. The 1-year survival rate of pleural mesothelioma treated with chemotherapy is 58%, according to OncLive. The 5-year survival rate was 16.4%, as noted by ScienceDirect.
- Radiation is beams of energy that kill cancer. The 2-year mesothelioma survival rate with radiation therapy was 26%, according to the National Cancer Database (NCDB).
- Immunotherapy boosts the body’s immune response to cancer. The 1-year survival rate for mesothelioma patients treated with immunotherapy was 70.4% in a recent study.
- Clinical trials test new and possibly better treatments. Photochemistry and Photobiology noted that patients who received the emerging treatments photodynamic (light-based) therapy and proton therapy had a 1-year survival rate of 58%.
Mesothelioma doctors can recommend the best treatment plan to help improve your survival time depending on the unique factors in your case.
“Mesothelioma is a serious disease, but if it is caught early and treated aggressively, there can be positive outcomes.”
— Dr. Daniel LaBow, mesothelioma specialist
Mesothelioma Survival Rates Without Treatment
Patients with mesothelioma have lower survival rates if they do not get treated, since the cancer can spread unchecked. The average 3-year survival rate is 7.9%, and the 5-year survival rate is 5%.
It’s important to consider all your treatment options if you’re facing a mesothelioma diagnosis. If you have advanced cancer, you can still get palliative (pain-relieving) treatments. While these are not as aggressive as other options, they can give you a higher quality of life and may help you live longer as a result.
U.S. Veterans Who Outlived Mesothelioma Survival Rates
It may be possible for you or a veteran that you love to outlive the average mesothelioma survival rates. Learn about U.S. veterans with mesothelioma who defied the odds and lived longer below.
Art Putt
- Branch: U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force
- Prognosis: 6 months to 1 year
- Survival Time: 7+ years
Diagnosed in 2018, Art is still living happily thanks to chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and holistic treatments.
Ernie Conry
- Branch: U.S. Army
- Prognosis: 12-21 months
- Survival Time: 7 years
Following his pleural mesothelioma diagnosis, Ernie underwent multiple treatments like surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation to live longer.
Walter Twidwell
- Branch: U.S. Navy
- Prognosis: 1 year or less
- Survival Time: Over 2 years
Even though Walter decided against major cancer treatments, he still fought mesothelioma and lived longer than expected.
Get Help Improving Your Mesothelioma Survival Rate
While mesothelioma survival rates are not as high as those of some other cancers, it's important to remember that many patients have gone on to live longer than expected with treatment.
If you or a U.S. veteran you love is facing a mesothelioma diagnosis, we can help you get the medical care you need to feel better and potentially become a long-term survivor.
Work with the Mesothelioma Veterans Center to:
- Connect with top doctors near you for free
- File for VA health care benefits
- Pursue financial compensation for treatments
Call (877) 450-8973 now or get a Free Veterans Packet now to explore all the ways we can assist you or a loved one facing a mesothelioma diagnosis.
Mesothelioma Survival Rates FAQs
What is the mesothelioma 5-year survival rate?
The 5-year mesothelioma survival rate is currently 15%. This means that 15% of patients are still living 5 years after a diagnosis.
While the 5-year mesothelioma survival rate is low compared to some other cancers, it’s important to remember that it’s just an average. Each patient’s cancer journey is unique and you could potentially live longer.
Has anyone ever survived mesothelioma?
Yes, some people have survived mesothelioma to become long-term survivors. For example, Sissy Hoffman lived for almost 30 years following her pleural mesothelioma diagnosis in 1995.
U.S. veteran Art Putt is another long-term survivor of mesothelioma. Diagnosed with advanced cancer in 2018, he’s still living today thanks to chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and diet changes.
Get a Free Veterans Packet to learn more about treatments that could help you live longer with mesothelioma.
What is the mesothelioma and lung cancer survival rate?
Mesothelioma is often mistaken for lung cancer, but they are two different diseases that have unique survival rate figures. Lung cancer has a 5-year survival rate of 32%, which is more than double the 5-year survival rate of mesothelioma at 15%.
Still, you or someone you love could become a long-term survivor of either cancer depending on your stage at the time of diagnosis, your overall health, which treatments you receive, and more.
What’s the survival rate of stage 4 mesothelioma?
The survival rate of stage 4 mesothelioma is 4.9%, according to ASCO Journal of Clinical Oncology. Stage 4 mesothelioma is the most advanced stage where distant metastasis (spread to organs throughout the body) has occurred.
Still, some stage 4 patients can live for long spans of time. John Stahl is a 6-year survivor of stage 4 mesothelioma thanks to chemotherapy. “I’m pretty well back to normal,” he says today.
Is survival rate different from life expectancy?
Yes. Mesothelioma life expectancy measures how long patients can expect to live (usually in months or years) following a diagnosis. Mesothelioma cancer survival rates measure the number of patients who survive for a certain amount of time after diagnosis.
The average life expectancy for mesothelioma is 12-21 months. Your life expectancy could be longer depending on your treatment plan, type and stage of mesothelioma, and more.
What are the odds of beating mesothelioma?
The odds of beating mesothelioma are low but not impossible. Many U.S. veterans and civilians have outlived average survival rates thanks to treatments from top doctors.
“There’s a misconception that mesothelioma is this death sentence. It's not,” says Dr. Raja Flores, who has been treating this cancer for over 30 years. “Yes, a lot of patients do die from it, but you're not guaranteed to die if you have mesothelioma.”
How can I improve my mesothelioma survival rate?
You can potentially improve your mesothelioma survival rate by getting treatments like surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation to kill cancer cells and destroy tumors.
Call our registered nurses at (877) 450-8973 now to find doctors and treatments that may improve your mesothelioma survival rate. There’s no cost to speak with our team.
