Detailed Guide:

Detailed Guide:
What Are the Key Statistics for Hodgkin's Disease?

The American Cancer Society estimates that in 2005 about 7,350 new cases of Hodgkin disease will be diagnosed in the United States. Of these new cases, 3,370 will occur in women and 3,980 in men. These numbers have not changed much over the past few years.

Hodgkin disease can occur in both children and adults. It is more common, though, in 2 age groups: early adulthood (age 15 to 40, usually 25 to 30) and late adulthood (after age 55). Hodgkin disease is rare before 5 years of age. About 10% to 15% of cases are diagnosed in children 16 years of age and younger.

An estimated 1,410 people (630 women, 780 men) will die of Hodgkin disease in the United States during 2005. Because of advances in treatment, death rates have fallen more than 60% since the early 1970s. By 2001, there were over 123,000 people who had survived this disease.

The 1-year relative survival rate for all patients after treatment is 93%; the 5-year and 10-year rates are 85% and 77%, respectively. At 15 years, the relative survival rate is 68%. Certain factors such as the stage of the disease and a patientÂ’s age (older patients have lower survival rates) affect this. During the first 15 years after treatment, the main cause of death in these patients is recurrent Hodgkin disease. By 15 to 20 years after treatment, death due to other causes, such as developing a second type of cancer, usually caused by treatment, is more common.

The 5-year survival rate (for example) refers to the percentage of patients who live at least 5 years after their cancer is diagnosed. Five-year survival rates are used to produce a standard way of discussing prognosis. Of course, many people live much longer than 5 years. Five-year cause-specific or relative survival rates exclude patients dying of other diseases. This means that anyone who died of another cause, such as heart disease, is not counted.

Of course, current 5-year survival rates are based on people with Hodgkin disease diagnosed and initially treated more than 5 years ago. Advances in treatment have produced a more favorable outlook for recently diagnosed patients. For a discussion on 5-year survival by stage of disease, see the section How Is Hodgkin Disease Staged?"