What is the life expectancy of someone with COPD
                     What is the life 
expectancy of 
someone with COPD
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a health condition that creates breathing 
difficulty. It causes breathlessness, fatigue, wheezing, and chronic cough. The health problem is a 
group of lung issues like chronic bronchitis, irreversible asthma, and emphysema that can affect 
anyone. It can lead to airflow obstruction because the tiny sacs in the lungs can lose their capacity 
to shrink or stretch, walls between sacs can get damaged, over secretion of mucus may block the 
airflow, and air sacs walls can inflame or become thick. For those interested in knowing the life 
expectancy of people dealing with COPD, the information has been segregated in the following 
sections. Here you go!
Life expectancy with COPD
There is no thumb rule regarding the life expectancy rate of COPD patients. The disease gradually 
progresses and is not entirely curable. The expectancy results depend upon your age, lifestyle, 
health, the severity of the condition, and the chosen treatment option. 
Many COPD patients live until the late 70s or 80s. It suggests that the lung condition is not a death 
sentence. But, this only holds true for people who have a mild condition and don’t have other heart 
diseases.
For other people, there is a five-year life expectancy. Experts claim that about 40 to 70 out of 100 
people stay alive for at least five years after the diagnosis. But, its timely treatment can slow down 
the progression rate.
COPD severity and life diagnosis
To define the severity of COPD, the doctors use the Global Initiative on Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) 
system. It classifies COPD severity depending upon how much air you can exhale in one second after 
blowing into a plastic tube called a spirometer. The divisions are based on the results of people who fall in 
the same group as you based on age, gender, and ethnic group but don’t have any health conditions. The 
stages are:
GOLD 1 (80% or more)
GOLD 2 (50% and 79%)
GOLD 3 (30% and 49%)
GOLD 4 (Less than 30%)
Typically, the higher is your stage on the GOLD system, the less likely you are to live a healthy and long life.
Symptoms and severity
Your symptoms also play a significant role in determining your life expectancy. Patients with the 
worsened signs are less likely to live a long and healthy life, while those who are well and show mild 
symptoms live long. So, are you experiencing a high level of difficulty in breathing and were you 
admitted to the hospital for COPD flare-ups are vital questions when predicting the life period of a 
COPD patient.
Smoking and life expectancy
Smoking is the primary cause of COPD. Patients who are suffering from this condition and smoke 
can die soon. According to stats, for men aged 65 and smoking, the life expectancy drop rate is:
1st Stage: 0.3 years
2nd Stage: 2.2 years
3rd Stage: 5.8 years
4th Stage: 5.8 years
So, COPD is a severe health condition that can reduce your life expectancy. It depends upon several 
factors like your age, COPD stage, treatment, and other health conditions.
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