Survival statistics for brain and spinal cord tumours
Survival statistics for cancer are very general estimates and must be interpreted very carefully. Because these statistics are based on the experience of groups of people, they cannot be used to predict a particular person's chances of survival.
There are many different ways to measure and report cancer survival statistics. Your doctor can explain the statistics for brain and spinal cord tumours and what they mean to you.
Statistics may not be available for rare types of brain and spinal cord tumours.
Net survival
Net survival represents the probability (chance) of surviving cancer in the absence of other causes of death. It is used to give an estimate of the percentage of people who will survive cancer.
In Canada, the 5-year net survival statistic for brain tumours is 19%. This means that, on average, about 19% of people diagnosed with brain tumours will live for at least 5 years.
Spinal cord tumours are included in the category of central nervous system (CNS) tumours, which excludes brain tumours. In Canada, the 5-year net survival for CNS tumours is 61%. This means that, on average, about 61% of people diagnosed with CNS tumours (excluding brain tumours) will live for at least 5 years.
Survival statistics by type of tumour
The following information comes from CONCORD-3, which analyzed the net survival from brain tumours in adults worldwide, including Canada. This study used an older version of the WHO classification system (published in 2016), so the names of the tumours are different than the names in the most recent version of this classification system (published in 2021). Not all types of brain or spinal cord tumours have statistics available.
These statistics cover 5-year net survival in Canada for the most recent period available (2010 to 2014).
| Type of tumour | 5-year net survival |
| astrocytoma (grade 2) | 60.9% |
| astrocytoma (grade 3) | 26.7% |
| glioblastoma (grade 4) | 10.6% |
| oligodendroglioma (average of all grades) | 58.9% |
| ependymoma (average of all grades) | 65.5% |
| Age | 5-year net survival |
| 15 to 39 | 31.4% |
| 40 to 70 | 7.1% |
| 71 to 99 | 1.8% |
Treatments have improved since 2014, which means that survival rates may be higher for people being diagnosed today.
Survival statistics for other brain and spinal cord tumours
There are no specific Canadian statistics available for the other types of brain and spinal cord tumours.
Meningioma
In the United States, the 5-year net survival for cancerous and benign (non-cancerous) meningioma is between 40% and 84%. Benign tumours have a higher survival rate.
Spinal cord tumours
In the United Kingdom, almost 95% of people diagnosed with a spinal cord tumour will live for 5 years or more. About 90% of people will live 10 years or more.
Questions about survival
People with cancer should talk to their doctor about their prognosis. Prognosis depends on many factors, including:
- your health history
- type of cancer
- stage
- characteristics of the cancer
- treatments chosen
- how the cancer responds to treatment
Only a doctor familiar with these factors can put all of this information together with survival statistics to arrive at a prognosis.
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