Study confirms high survival rates for men with low-risk prostate cancer

New research in the July 2025 issue of JNCCN-Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network finds that for people diagnosed with nonmetastatic low-risk prostate cancer later in life, and treated according to NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology (NCCN Guidelines^®), 90% were likely to survive their cancer for their remaining life-expectancy. Of those with nonmetastatic higher-risk cancer and a longer life expectancy, that likelihood was still greater than 65%.

The researchers studied 62,839 people diagnosed with non-metastatic prostate cancer in Sweden between the years 2000-2020. All were placed within a defined risk category, had a life expectancy of more than three years, and were treated according to evidence-based, expert consensus-driven recommendations from the NCCN Guidelines^® for Prostate Cancer. Those with low- and intermediate-risk cancer were six times more likely to die of other causes than prostate cancer. Those with high-risk cancer were still twice as likely to die of other causes.

Our data support adherence to guideline recommendations for treatment of prostate cancer. If guideline-recommended treatment is used, most people with prostate cancer will live for many years after diagnosis. That includes active surveillance as an excellent treatment strategy for appropriately selected people."

Pietro Scilipoti, MD, lead researcher of Uppsala University in Sweden and IRCCS San Raffaele Hospital in Italy

The Gleason score/Grade Group, clinical TNM stage, treatment data, and other information for the study came from the National Prostate Cancer Register (NPCR) of Sweden. Life expectancy at the time of diagnosis was calculated based on age and comorbidity. Date and cause of death were taken from the Cause of Death Register.

"This study offers a big sigh of relief for many men facing a prostate cancer diagnosis," commented Ahmad Shabsigh, MD, The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center - James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute, Member of the NCCN Guidelines Panel for Prostate Cancer, who was not involved with this research. "It reveals that with NCCN Guidelines-recommended treatment, you're significantly more likely to die from something else-up to six times more likely, in fact-even if your cancer is high-risk. This holds true even when looking at data from a different healthcare system, like Sweden's. What's truly striking is that for patients with low-risk prostate cancer, many of whom were on active surveillance, the 30-year mortality risk from the cancer itself was only about 11%. It really underscores the power of evidence-based treatment plans and the importance of focusing on a person's overall health, not just their cancer."