Survival Rates for Chronic Myelomonocytic Leukemia (CMML)

This is the most up-to-date information on survival rates for chronic myelomonocytic leukemia (CMML).

Survival statistics are a way for doctors and patients to get a general idea of the outlook (prognosis) for people with a certain type of cancer. These statistics can’t tell you how long you will live, but they might help you better understand how likely it is that your treatment will be successful.

CMML survival statistics don't tell the whole story

Survival stats are often based on previous outcomes of people who had a specific disease. These stats can’t predict what will happen in any one person’s case. There are some limits to these numbers to keep in mind.

First, these numbers are based on people diagnosed with chronic myelomonocytic leukemia (CMML) some time ago. People now being diagnosed with CMML may have a better outlook because of improvements in treatment since these numbers were gathered.

Also, many things can affect a person’s outlook, such as:

• Age and overall health
• Blood cell counts
• Certain gene or chromosome changes in the CMML cells
• The CMML subtype and risk group
• The percentage of blasts (very early forms of blood cells) in the blood and bone marrow
• Blood levels of LDH (lactate dehydrogenase)
• How well the CMML responds to treatment

Your cancer care team is familiar with your specific situation. They can tell you more about how the numbers below may apply to you.

Survival statistics for CMML

There is more than one way to describe a person’s likely prognosis (outlook).

Median survival is one way to look at this. Median survival is the amount of time after diagnosis at which half the people with a disease are still alive. This is a middle value, meaning half of the people don’t live this long and half live longer.

When looking at all people with CMML, the median survival is in the range of 20 to 40 months. However, there is a large variation in survival rates, based on which risk group a person falls into.

Several systems can be used to classify CMML into risk groups, based on many of the factors listed above. (To learn more about this, see Chronic Myelomonocytic Leukemia (CMML) Subtypes, Stages, and Risk Groups.)

Each system is slightly different, but in general:

• For people in the lowest risk groups the median survival is in the range of 8 years (or more).
• For people in the highest risk groups the median survival is generally around 16 months.

Remember, these survival statistics are only estimates. They can’t predict what will happen with any individual person. Many other factors can also affect a person’s outlook. We understand these statistics can be confusing and may lead you to have more questions. Talk to your cancer care team to better understand your specific situation.