A prognosis is a prediction of the outcome of one’s disease. How likely is survival? Will the cancer come back? These are the big questions on most people’s minds after receiving a diagnosis of mandibular cancer.
Factors That Affect Prognosis
In general, several tumor characteristics can inform a patient about their chances of being cured.
While each of these factors contributes to one’s outcome, patients should have a discussion with their doctor to determine their overall prognosis. Giving a percentage of survival is challenging because cancer research often looks at multiple types of cancer and may include a large range of patients who underwent a variety of treatments.
Stage
Stage is the most important factor that affects a patient’s chance of being cured.
Site
The location and extent of the tumor in the oral cavity can affect the surgeon’s ability to resect the tumor with adequate margins of healthy tissue around it.
Subsites of Mandibular Cancer
Mandibular cancer can include cancer in the floor of mouth and gums.
Type & Grade
Both the type and grade of the tumor determine the amount of treatment necessary and the ultimate prognosis.
Spread to Lymph Nodes
This helps determine stage, but even without other factors, spread to lymph nodes in the neck decreases the chance of cure, especially if there is evidence of growth of cancer outside of the lymph node.
Tumor Margins
The ability to completely remove the tumor with a margin of normal tissue around it can be a very important factor in a patient’s prognosis.
Spread into Local Structures
Spread into large nerves, vessels, lymphatics, or even the skin of the cheek has been shown to indicate a worse prognosis.
Survival Rates of Mandibular Cancer
Survival Rates for Patients with Floor of Mouth Cancer
Stage I
Disease-Specific Survival at Five Years
73%
Disease-Specific Survival at Ten Years
33%
Stage II
Disease-Specific Survival at Five Years
60%
Disease-Specific Survival at Ten Years
44%
Stage III
Disease-Specific Survival at Five Years
36%
Disease-Specific Survival at Ten Years
26%
Stage IV
Disease-Specific Survival at Five Years
30%
Disease-Specific Survival at Ten Years
20%
Survival Rates for Patients with Gum Cancer
This includes cancer of the gums and other locations in the mouth (excluding the tongue, lips, and floor of mouth).
Stage I
Disease-Specific Survival at Five Years
81%
Disease-Specific Survival at Ten Years
69%
Stage II
Disease-Specific Survival at Five Years
62%
Disease-Specific Survival at Ten Years
49%
Stage III
Disease-Specific Survival at Five Years
45%
Disease-Specific Survival at Ten Years
28%
Stage IV
Disease-Specific Survival at Five Years
40%
Disease-Specific Survival at Ten Years
29%
Healthcare Disclaimer
Estimated Disease-Specific Survival relates to the percentage of people with a specific cancer who are alive at a given time point, such as five years after diagnosis.
It excludes people who may have died from a disease other than their cancer. These estimates from large national databases can help you understand your outlook. However, please remember that these broad statistics may not apply to everyone.
