AQW 52538/22-27 Written question to the Minister of Health
To ask the Minister of Health to detail the survival rates of patients with leukaemia, in the last five years, broken down by classification type.
Asked by Connie Egan MLA on 21 September 2026
- Answered
- Written
- Tabled
- 21 September 2026
- Answer due by
- 6 October 2026
- Answered
- 6 October 202615 days after tabling
- Department
- Department of Health
- Priority question
- No
Answer
The Northern Ireland Cancer Registry (NICR) published its latest official statistics on cancers diagnosed in Northern Ireland in August 2026, covering the period 1993 to 2023. Validated cancer incidence data is currently available only for this reporting period.
One-year survival data for all leukaemia patients diagnosed in Northern Ireland during the period 2019 to 2023, with mortality follow-up to the end of 2024, is provided in the below table. Data is represented as age-standardised net survival as this estimates the probability of survival following a cancer diagnosis after adjusting for deaths from causes other than cancer. As a result, it is generally considered the most appropriate measure for assessing the impact of changes in cancer care on patient outcomes.
| Leukaemia Type | Patients included at start | One-year age-standardised net survival (95% Confidence Interval) |
| All Leukaemia Types | 1,173 | 80.0% (77.5% - 82.5%) |
| Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia | 56 | 75.5% (63.4% - 89.9%) |
| Acute Myeloblastic Leukaemia | 284 | 49.1% (42.0% - 57.4%) |
| Chronic Lymphocytic Leukaemia | 500 | 97.3% (95.6% - 99.0%) |
| Chronic Myeloid Leukaemia | 115 | 90.1% (83.6% - 97.1%) |
| Other Leukaemia | 218 | 73.7% (67.9% - 80.0%) |
Five-year survival estimates are not yet available for patients diagnosed during 2019 to 2023. Survival statistics are calculated using a cohort approach, which follows a group of patients for a specified period after diagnosis. While one-year survival can be calculated for patients diagnosed up to 2023 using mortality data available to the end of 2024, five-year survival estimates require a full five years of follow-up. Patients diagnosed during 2019 to 2023 would therefore require mortality follow-up data extending to the end of 2028, which are not yet available.
One-year survival and five-year survival data for leukaemia patients diagnosed during the period 2014 to 2018 are presented in the table below.
| Leukaemia type | Patients included at start | One-year age-standardised net survival (95% Confidence Interval) | Five-year age-standardised net survival (95% Confidence Interval) |
| All Leukaemia Types | 1,198 | 76.3% (73.8% - 78.9%) | 62.3% (58.7% - 66.1%) |
| Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia | 56 | 71.6% (53.8% - 95.3%) | 52.9% (39.7% - 70.6%) |
| Acute Myeloblastic Leukaemia | 309 | 42.1% (34.8% - 50.9%) | 23.6% (19.0% - 29.3%) |
| Chronic Lymphocytic Leukaemia | 559 | 96.2% (94.3% - 98.1%) | 86.5% (82.0% - 91.2%) |
| Chronic Myeloid Leukaemia | 93 | 90.0% (82.2% - 98.5%) | 82.3% (70.4% - 96.3%) |
| Other Leukaemia | 181 | 67.0% (59.9% - 74.9%) | 46.9% (38.1% - 57.7%) |
For leukaemia patients overall, one-year age-standardised net survival increased from 76.3% (95% confidence interval: 73.8% to 78.9%) for those diagnosed during 2014 to 2018 to 80.0% (95% confidence interval: 77.5% to 82.5%) for those diagnosed during 2019 to 2023, with mortality follow-up to the end of 2024. While this represents an improvement in survival, the increase was not statistically significant.