| Five-year cancer survival rates | ||||
| Relative survival percentage by cancer site | ||||
| Diagnosed in | ||||
| 1975-1979* | 1985-1989 | 1996-2003 | Improvement | |
| Prostate | 67 | 82 | 99 | 32 points |
| Melanoma | 83 | 88 | 92 | 9 points |
| Breast (female) | 75 | 83 | 89 | 14 points |
| Urinary bladder | 75 | 80 | 81 | 6 points |
| All sites | 55 | 56 | 66 | 11 points |
| Colon and rectum | 51 | 60 | 65 | 14 points |
| Non-Hodgkin lymphoma | 48 | 53 | 64 | 15 points |
| Leukemia | 36 | 44 | 50 | 14 points |
| Ovary | 38 | 40 | 45 | 7 points |
| Lung and bronchus | 12 | 14 | 16 | 4 points |
| Liver | 4 | 6 | 11 | 7 points |
| Pancreas | 3 | 4 | 5 | 3 points |
| *Prostate and lung cancer survival rates are 1974-76 instead of 1975-79 as data not available for later period. | ||||
| 5-year relative survival rates based on follow up of patients through 2004. | ||||
| Source: Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) Program (www.seer.cancer.gov) SEER*Stat Database, National Cancer Institute, report released April 2007. | ||||