Survival experience of patients with cancer of the larynx (ICD-32) or lung (ICD-34) registered by the Mumbai (Bombay) population based cancer registry, India, during the years 1992-94 was determined. The vital statistics of the patients were established by matching with death certificates from the Mumbai Municipal death register and by active methods such as telephone enquiry, reply-paid postal enquiry, house visits and scrutiny of case records. Of the 1905 (675 larynx and 1230 lung) eligible cases for analysis, 1480 were dead (450 larynx and 1030 lung) and 425 were alive (225 larynx and 200 lung). The overall 5-year observed and relative survival rates for laryngeal cancers were 29.1% and 36.4%, and for lung cancers were 12.5% and 15.9% respectively. On multivariate analysis, age, treatment and clinical extent of disease emerged as independent predictors of survival with both cancers. People aged 55 years and above had a relative risk of four or more for laryngeal cancer and 2.3 times and more for lung cancer death as compared to those aged less than 35 years. Early detection and prompt treatment should improve overall survival from lung as well as laryngeal cancer.
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