Patients with leukemia may ultimately die due to multiple infections (bacteria, fungal, and/or viral), severe nutritional deficiencies, and failure of multiple organ systems. The patients can also face complications due to the leukemia treatment itself, which can sometimes be life-threatening.

How long can you live with leukemia?

Today, the average five-year survival rate for all types of leukemia is 65.8%. That means about 69 of every 100 people with leukemia are likely to live at least five years after diagnosis. Many people will live much longer than five years. The survival rates are lowest for acute myeloid leukemia (AML).

What are the chances of dying from leukemia?

In 1975, somebody diagnosed with leukemia in the United States had a 33 percent chance of being alive five years later, a common cutoff point to measure cancer survival; by 2010, that survival rate had doubled, to almost 66 percent. For multiple myeloma, those rates were 26 percent in 1975 and 53 percent in 2010.