Individuals are considered survivors from the time of a cancer diagnosis through the rest of their life. On this page, find key survivorship-related statistics and graphs.
For additional cancer-related statistics, please visit NCI's Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) Program.
As of January 2022, it is estimated that there are 18.1 million cancer survivors in the United States. This represents approximately 5.4% of the population. 1
The number of cancer survivors is projected to increase by 24.4%, to 22.5 million, by 2032.2
The number of cancer survivors is projected to grow to 26.0 million by 2040.2
Over the next decade, the number of people who have lived 5 or more years after their cancer diagnosis is projected to increase approximately 30%, to 16.3 million.1
In 2022, 69% of survivors have lived 5+ years since their diagnosis; 47% of survivors have lived 10+ years since their diagnosis; and 18% of survivors have lived 20+ years since their diagnosis.1
In 2022, 69% of survivors have lived 5+ years since their diagnosis; 47% of survivors have lived 10+ years since their diagnosis; and 18% of survivors have lived 20+ years since their diagnosis.1
In 2022, 69% of survivors have lived 5+ years since their diagnosis; 47% of survivors have lived 10+ years since their diagnosis; and 18% of survivors have lived 20+ years since their diagnosis.1
67% of survivors are currently age 65 or older.1
It is estimated that by 2040, 74% of cancer survivors in the United States will be age 65 or older.1
There are 623,405 people living with metastatic breast, prostate, lung, colorectal, or bladder cancer or metastatic melanoma in the United States, and that number is expected to increase to 693,452 by the year 2025.3
Among today's survivors, the most common cancer types represented include female breast (22%, 4.1 million), prostate (20%, 3.5 million), colorectal (8%, 1.4 million), melanoma (8%, 1.5 million), and gynecologic (8%, 1.4 million).* 1
Among today's survivors, the most common cancer types represented include female breast (22%, 4.1 million), prostate (20%, 3.5 million), colorectal (8%, 1.4 million), melanoma (8%, 1.5 million), and gynecologic (8%, 1.4 million).* 1
Among today's survivors, the most common cancer types represented include female breast (22%, 4.1 million), prostate (20%, 3.5 million), colorectal (8%, 1.4 million), melanoma (8%, 1.5 million), and gynecologic (8%, 1.4 million).* 1
* Note: People may be represented more than once in these percentages if they have been diagnosed with more than one cancer. For example, a man who has survived both colorectal cancer and prostate cancer will be included as both a colorectal cancer survivor and as a prostate cancer survivor. Therefore, the sum of the percentages may be more than 100%.
1American Cancer Society. Cancer Treatment & Survivorship Facts & Figures 2022-2024. Atlanta: American Cancer Society; 2022.
2 Adapted from Bluethmann SM, Mariotto AB, Rowland, JH. Anticipating the ''Silver Tsunami'': Prevalence Trajectories and Comorbidity Burden among Older Cancer Survivors in the United States. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2016;25:1029-1036.
3Gallicchio L, Devasia TP, Tonorezos E, Mollica MA, Mariotto A. Estimation of the Number of Individuals Living With Metastatic Cancer in the United States, JNCI: Journal of the National Cancer Institute, 2022, https://doi.org/10.1093/jnci/djac158