Women More Likely To Survive Cancer Than Men — At A Cost

By Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter

Medically reviewed by Carmen Pope, BPharm. Last updated on March 18, 2026.

via HealthDay

WEDNESDAY, March 18, 2026 — Women are more likely to survive cancer than men, but they’re also more likely to develop severe side effects to treatment, a new evidence review says.

Female cancer patients have a 21% lower risk of death than men across 12 different types of advanced cancers, researchers recently reported in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

However, they have a 12% higher risk of adverse effects from the chemotherapy, radiation therapy and other treatments used to save their lives, researchers found.

“Women demonstrated a survival advantage, but at the cost of increased severe toxicity,” lead researcher Natansh Modi, a lecturer in pharmacology at Adelaide University in Australia, said in a news release.

For the new study, researchers analyzed data from more than 20,000 cancer patients across 39 trials that supported U.S. drug approvals between 2011 and 2021.

The trials spanned 12 advanced types of solid tumors, including lung, colon, melanoma and breast cancers.

The results provide clear evidence that sex is a key predictor of outcomes in cancer treatment, Modi said.

“Sex is a fundamental biological factor that influences immune function, drug metabolism, body composition and tumor biology,” Modi said. “Yet despite longstanding recommendations from regulatory and funding bodies to report outcomes by sex, it is still treated as an afterthought in many trials and is rarely factored into baseline risk or used to personalize treatment decisions.”

Making sex a consideration in deciding cancer care could have powerful implications for how cancer drugs are developed and prescribed, researchers said.

“This is about improving outcomes for every cancer patient,” Modi said. “If women are living longer but experiencing more severe side effects, we need to acknowledge that and respond to it. At the same time, we need to better understand why male patients appear to have poorer survival.”

Sources

Adelaide University, news release, March 16, 2026

Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

Source: HealthDay

Posted : 2026-03-19 01:54

Disclaimer

Every effort has been made to ensure that the information provided by Drugslib.com is accurate, up-to-date, and complete, but no guarantee is made to that effect. Drug information contained herein may be time sensitive. Drugslib.com information has been compiled for use by healthcare practitioners and consumers in the United States and therefore Drugslib.com does not warrant that uses outside of the United States are appropriate, unless specifically indicated otherwise. Drugslib.com's drug information does not endorse drugs, diagnose patients or recommend therapy. Drugslib.com's drug information is an informational resource designed to assist licensed healthcare practitioners in caring for their patients and/or to serve consumers viewing this service as a supplement to, and not a substitute for, the expertise, skill, knowledge and judgment of healthcare practitioners.

The absence of a warning for a given drug or drug combination in no way should be construed to indicate that the drug or drug combination is safe, effective or appropriate for any given patient. Drugslib.com does not assume any responsibility for any aspect of healthcare administered with the aid of information Drugslib.com provides. The information contained herein is not intended to cover all possible uses, directions, precautions, warnings, drug interactions, allergic reactions, or adverse effects. If you have questions about the drugs you are taking, check with your doctor, nurse or pharmacist.

Women More Likely To Survive Cancer Than Men — At A Cost

Sources

Read more

Disclaimer

Popular Keywords