Vaginal cancer - survival statistics

This page presents vaginal cancer survival statistics by trends, deprivation, age and stage at diagnosis.

Survival data is only available for cancers of the vagina and vulva combined. Five-year relative survival rates for vulval and vaginal cancers vary significantly by stage of disease and age at diagnosis. The overall five-year relative survival rate for women diagnosed with cancers of the vulva and vagina in England and Wales in 1996-99 was 58%, and the one-year survival rate was 76%. 1

Vaginal cancer survival by:

 

Vaginal cancer survival trends

One- and five-year relative survival rates for vaginal and vulval cancer among women diagnosed in England and Wales improved by an average of 3% every five years between 1971 and 1990. This trend continued for patients diagnosed in the 1990s. Rates improved from 62% to 76% for one-year survival and from 40% to 58% for five-year survival between the periods 1971-75 and 1996-99 (Figure 3.1). 1, 2

Figure 3.1: One- and five-year relative survival for cancers of the vulva and vagina, patients diagnosed in England and Wales, by year of diagnosis

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Vaginal cancer survival and deprivation

Evidence suggests that survival rates for the most deprived women are significantly lower than rates for the most affluent patients. 3

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Vaginal cancer survival rates by age

Survival rates decrease with increasing age at diagnosis. Among women diagnosed between 1996-99 in England and Wales, the five-year relative survival rates for those aged 15-49 was 83%, for women aged 50-69 it was 65% and for those aged 70+ it was 52% ( Figure 3.2). 1

Figure 3.2: One- and five-year relative survival for cancers of the vulva and vagina, patients diagnosed in England and Wales, by age at diagnosis

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Vaginal cancer survival rates by stage at diagnosis

Five-year survival is 95% for patients diagnosed with in situ vaginal tumours or grade 3 VAIN, falling to 39% for patients diagnosed with FIGO stage II tumours, and 19% for patients diagnosed with stage IVa tumours. 4

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References for vaginal cancer survival

  1.  Office for National Statistics. ; Cancer survival: England and Wales, 1991-2001, less common cancers by age group. Accessed 2006
  2.  Office for National Statistics. Cancer survival: Cancer survival trends by period of diagnosis and sex age-standardised relative survival at one and five years, and average increase in relative survival between successive five-year periods of diagnosis, 1971-1990. Accessed 2006
  3.  Coleman, M.P., et al., Cancer Survival Trends in England & Wales, 1971-1995 Deprivation & NHS Region. 1999: The Stationery Office. Link
  4.  Beller, U., et al., . Carcinoma of the vagina. Int J Gynaecol Obstet, 2003. 83 Suppl 1: p. 27-39