When I look at survival rates for many cancers, I notice that they usually list 90-95% chance for survival if it is treated at the first stage.
What are the causes of death in the 5-10% of Stage I cancers?
I would need to see the thing your referencing to be sure, but there are two possible causes of these deaths.
First, a given statistic may or may not address cause specific mortality. That is, on that table all deaths may, “count,” not only deaths directly related to cancer. Even for the age groups least likely to die, a certain portion of these people will be struck by buses or metiorites over the next five to ten years.
For tables that address cause specific mortality, that is tables that only, “count,” cancer deaths, the inclusion as a Stage 1 cancer refers to the time-point at the beginning of the 5-10 year survival rate table. Of course, some or many of these cancers can advance to a more lethal stage. A very traditional model of fatal cancer describes the evolution from Stage 1 to ultimately Stage 3 or 4 cancers. Just because a given cancer case isn’t bad at the start of the 5-10 year time-phrase doesn’t mean that cancer won’t progress to a point where it threatens the survival of the person bearing the cancer.
Here’s a quick overview of cancer staging:
Unless I misunderstood your reply, I think the OP is referring to the percentage that acually die with a stage 1 cancer, as opposed to being in the stage 1 window. I guess you are right that certain tables do not take into account the actual cause of death. My first thought is that the stage 1 cancer can grow in place and maybe do some life-threatening damage in that way. For instance, maybe a brain tumor is pressing against a major vessel in the brain.
Very few people actually die from a stage I cancer.
The 5-10% who don’t survive after being diagnosed and treated in the early stages of the disease are those who don’t respond to the treatment and their disease progresses, ultimately resulting in their death.
Just a random thought, possibly it also includes those who die of complications from treatment? Problems with the anaesthesia from a surgery where the tumor is taken out and so on?