Speak to our specialist nurses
We know that these statistics may seem frightening. You can speak to our specialist nurses on our Support Line to get support and find out more about prognosis.
Being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer can feel overwhelming. You probably have lots of questions and worries. People may want to know how successful their treatment is likely to be, and what the chances are that their cancer may be cured after surgery. Thinking about this is normal. It’s also normal to decide you don’t want to know.
The prognosis will be different for each person. It depends on several things, including whether the cancer has spread, how far it has spread, your general health and the treatments you can have.
Can surgery cure pancreatic cancer?
Surgery is the most effective treatment for pancreatic cancer. It is the only treatment that might offer a cure. If it is an option for you, it may help you to live longer. After surgery, you may be offered chemotherapy to try to reduce the chances of the cancer coming back. After treatment, you will have check-ups. If the cancer comes back, you may be offered further treatment with chemotherapy.
Deciding whether to find out your prognosis
Finding out about your prognosis is a personal decision, and it’s up to you whether you do. If you decide you do want to know, speak to your doctor at the hospital. They won’t be able to tell you exactly what will happen. But they can give you an idea of what to expect.
You may decide you do not want to know, and your doctors will respect this. Sometimes your family members might feel differently. If your family want to know the prognosis and you don’t, with your permission they can speak to your medical team separately.
There is a lot of information about pancreatic cancer online, and not all of it is accurate or relevant to you. So it’s important to speak to your doctor about your own situation.
Questions you may want to ask your doctor or nurse
- What is my prognosis?
- How accurate is this?
- How successful is surgery likely to be?
- If the cancer comes back, what other treatment can I have?
- If I don’t want to know my prognosis but my family do, can you speak to them in confidence if I give my permission?
- Is there anything I can do to help me live longer?
How are survival rates are measured?
Some people want to know about survival rates for pancreatic cancer. Survival rates are averages based on large groups of people with pancreatic cancer. They can’t tell you what will happen to you. But if you do want to know more about survival rates, you can click the link below.
You may find these statistics frightening or upsetting, so think carefully before reading this information. You should also speak to your doctor about your own situation.
The statistics here are for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma, which is the most common type of pancreatic cancer. There is another type of cancer in the pancreas, called pancreatic neuroendocrine cancer. If you have been diagnosed with neuroendocrine cancer, speak to your doctor about your prognosis, as the statistics are different.
Survival rates for early pancreatic cancer
What do one year and five year survival mean?
The terms “one year survival” and “five year survival” mean the proportion of people who are still alive one year and five years after their cancer diagnosis. It doesn’t mean that you will only live for one year or five years.
What are the survival rates for early pancreatic cancer?
The one year survival rate for stage 1 and stage 2 pancreatic cancer (early pancreatic cancer) in England is 47%. This means about 47 out of 100 people are still alive after one year. This figure includes people who did and did not have surgery.
The five year survival rate for stage 1 and 2 pancreatic cancer is 12%, which means 12 out of 100 people are still alive after 5 years.
What are the survival rates after surgery for pancreatic cancer?
For people who have surgery to remove the cancer, the one year survival rate is about 73% and the five year survival rate is about 20%. Remember that these are averages, and can’t tell you what will happen in your situation.
Why are survival rates low for pancreatic cancer?
The survival statistics are low for pancreatic cancer compared to other cancers. This is partly because pancreatic cancer is hard to diagnose. Many people are diagnosed late, when the cancer has spread and surgery is not possible. Sometimes, for people who have surgery, cancer cells may already have spread outside the pancreas, and the cancer may start to grow again. This is one reason why you may have chemotherapy after surgery – to try to reduce the chance of the cancer coming back.
Remember that these statistics are general figures. If you want to know your own prognosis, speak to your doctor about this.
Speak to our nurses
Read Karen's story
“I was diagnosed officially on 12th September 2010. I had been feeling off it for some time, feeling sick and then severe abdominal pains at night, which the GP said was indigestion.”
"I was told it was nothing in my lifestyle that had caused it, I was a fit, healthy, non smoking and odd glass of wine woman. After eight days in high dependency, and four weeks in hospital I came home."
References
We have listed some of the references to the sources used to write this information. If you would like the full list of references, email us at publications@pancreaticcancer.org.uk
- Huang L, Jansen L, et al. Stratified survival of resected and overall pancreatic cancer patients in Europe and the USA in the early twenty-first century: a large, international population-based study. BMC Medicine. 2018 Aug 21;16(1):125. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12916-018-1120-9
- Biagi JJ, Cosby R, Bahl M, et al. Adjuvant Chemotherapy and Radiotherapy in Resected Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma: A Systematic Review and Clinical Practice Guideline. Curr. Oncol. 2023;30(7):6575-6586. doi:10.3390/curroncol30070482
- Get Data Out. National Disease Registration Service (NDRS), NHS England [online] Available at: Get Data Out
- Exarchakou A, Papacleovoulou G, Rous B, Magadi W, Rachet B, Neoptolemos JP, Coleman MP. Pancreatic cancer incidence and survival and the role of specialist centres in resection rates in England, 2000 to 2014: A population-based study. Pancreatology. 2020 Apr;20(3):454-461. doi: 10.1016/j.pan.2020.01.012.
Published March 2026
To be reviewed March 2029