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 salivary gland cancer. In general, there are several characteristics of the tumor that can inform a patient about their chances of being cured.
Factors That Affect Prognosis
Stage
This 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.
Type and 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 the cancer has grown outside of the lymph nodes.
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, skin and bone has been shown to indicate a worse prognosis.
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.
Survival Rates for Patients with Salivary Gland Cancer
Squamous Cell Carcinoma
Estimated Disease-Specific Survival at Five Years
46%
Estimated Disease-Specific Survival at 10 Years
37%
Adenocarcinoma
Estimated Disease-Specific Survival at Five Years
60%
Estimated Disease-Specific Survival at 10 Years
49%
Adenoid Cystic Carcinoma
Estimated Disease-Specific Survival at Five Years
84%
Estimated Disease-Specific Survival at 10 Years
71%
Mucoepidermoid Carcinoma, Poorly Differentiated
Estimated Disease-Specific Survival at Five Years
90%
Estimated Disease-Specific Survival at 10 Years
85%
Acinic Cell Carcinoma
Estimated Disease-Specific Survival at Five Years
96%
Estimated Disease-Specific Survival at 10 Years
94%
Mucoepidermoid Carcinoma (Other)
Estimated Disease-Specific Survival at Five Years
96%
Estimated Disease-Specific Survival at 10 Years
94%
Carcinoma in Pleomorphic Adenoma (Malignant Mixed Tumor)
Estimated Disease-Specific Survival at Five Years
82%
Estimated Disease-Specific Survival at 10 Years
71%
Mucoepidermoid Carcinoma, Well Differentiated
Estimated Disease-Specific Survival at Five Years
99%
Estimated Disease-Specific Survival at 10 Years
99%
Disclaimer: Estimated Disease-Specific Survival is 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. While these estimates from large national databases are helpful, it is important to remember that these broad statistics may not apply to one’s individual situation.
