Background: A cancer diagnosis is usually associated with a substantial loss of life years. However, few studie have quantified life expectancy (LE) and years of life lost (YLL) among cancer patients, particularly in China.
Objectives: This study aims, for the first time in China, to estimate the LE of patients across all cancer types, stratified by sex, age at diagnosis, and attained age, and to reveal the YLL among cancer patients.
Methods: This is a comparative assessment based on population-based cancer registration in China. Data on all-cause deaths, cancer cases and relative survival were obtained from publicly available reports. We used standard period life table method to estimate LE of both general population and cancer patients, with the latter based on the relative survival and parameterized long-term excess hazard functions. The LLYLL was the LE difference between cancer patients and sex- and age-matched general population.
Results: For cancer patients diagnosed at the median age of 64, the LE is 8.8 years, corresponding to a LLYLL of 9.2 years. Male patients have a LE and LLYLL of 6.7 years and 9.8 years, respectively, while females have 11.2 years and 8.4 years. Thyroid cancer had the highest LE (31.9 years), while pancreatic cancer had the lowest (2.6 years). Male patients generally had a lower LE than females. Younger patients experience greater LLYLL, except for thyroid cancer, oropharyngeal cancer, ovarian cancer, and male bladder cancer. LE gradually increased in patients who survived the first three years; thereafter, the decline depended on attained age, approaching that of the general population.
Conclusions: LE of cancer patients in China varied by sex, cancer type, age at diagnosis, and attained age. Cancer patients, healthcare providers, and policymakers may incorporate these estimates into their decision-making.

Life expectancy and years of life lost among cancer patients according to age at diagnosis in China, for both sexes