Prognosis for Thyroid Cancer

The term "prognosis" refers to the outlook, usually in terms of survival, for patients with a specific condition such as cancer following a particular treatment or intervention. For patients with cancer, prognosis is often measured in terms of the relative 5-year survival rate that is expressed as a percentage of patients who can be expected to be alive for at least 5-years. In general, a variety of factors, known as prognostic indicators, can influence the prognosis for cancer patients. These prognostic indicators are usually grouped into patient characteristics (e.g., age, overall health status, performance status, response to treatment) as well as tumor characteristics (type of tumor, aggressiveness of the tumor, stage of the disease).