The short answer
"Remission" means the signs and symptoms of cancer have decreased or disappeared. It comes in two forms: complete remission (no detectable cancer) and partial remission (the cancer shrank but is still detectable). "No evidence of disease" (NED) lines up with complete remission — nothing detectable now. Neither term means "cured," and follow-up continues either way.
Complete remission and NED both mean no detectable cancer right now.
Partial remission means the signs and symptoms of cancer are reduced but not all have gone away.
Neither term is the same as "cured."
Follow-up continues to catch any change early.
On this page
Watch: Remission vs. cure
50 sec · Captioned · Remission and cure mean different things — and time is what separates them.
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This page is for people who have been told they are in remission or have no evidence of disease (NED). It explains what each term means, how they overlap, and why neither one means cured.
The short version
These terms all describe how much cancer is left after treatment, and they overlap:
- Complete remission — all signs and symptoms of cancer have disappeared (NCI).
- No evidence of disease (NED) — a phrase often used for the same idea. NCI's prognosis page does not define it, so ask your care team what they mean by it.
- Partial remission — the signs and symptoms of the cancer are reduced, but not all have gone away.
What complete remission actually means
Complete remission means all signs and symptoms of cancer have disappeared. It does not mean every single cancer cell is gone. NCI says some cancer cells can remain in your body for many years after treatment, and these cells may cause the cancer to come back one day. That's part of why follow-up continues even after complete remission.
What partial remission means
Partial remission means the signs and symptoms of your cancer are reduced, but not all of them have gone away. Your care team can explain what this means for your treatment plan. Do not change or stop any treatment without talking to them first.
Why "NED" and "remission" mean almost the same thing
No evidence of disease and complete remission are often used to mean much the same thing: no cancer is currently found. Different doctors may favor one phrase or the other. Ask your oncologist which one they use for you and what tests it is based on.
Why none of this means "cured"
None of these terms means cured. Cure means there are no traces of your cancer after treatment and the cancer will never come back. Doctors usually say there are no signs of cancer at this time rather than promising a cure. For cancers that return, most do so within the first 5 years after treatment, but there is a chance cancer will come back later. After 5 or more years of complete remission, some doctors may say you are cured, but they cannot guarantee it.
What stays the same either way
Follow-up continues regardless of which term applies to you: complete remission, NED, or partial remission. The schedule and type of monitoring, whether exams, bloodwork, or imaging, depends on your specific cancer type and history. It does not depend on which of these words your doctor happens to use.
Ask which tests are behind your status
Ask your oncologist which specific tests are behind your particular remission or NED status.
Is this urgent?
None of these terms signal urgency on their own. They describe where things stand, not an emergency. What matters is keeping your scheduled follow-up appointments, since that is how any change would be caught early.
What to ask your team
- Am I in complete or partial remission, or would you describe this as no evidence of disease?
- What does that mean for my specific cancer type and risk of recurrence?
- What will my follow-up schedule look like from here?
- What symptoms, if any, should prompt me to come in sooner than my next visit?
Talking about this with family and friends
People around you may use "remission," "NED," and "cancer-free" loosely. They may not know the small differences your doctor intends. This can create confusing or mismatched expectations, especially with well-meaning relatives. It can help to explain your result in your own words. Say what it means, and what continued follow-up will look like. Don't let people assume the word alone tells the whole story. You get to decide how much detail to share, and with whom.
Sources
Common questions
Is complete remission the same as NED?
Effectively yes — both mean no cancer can be detected with current tests. Different doctors and cancer types favor one phrase or the other, but the meaning overlaps closely.
What does partial remission mean for me?
It means the signs and symptoms of your cancer are reduced, but some are still there. Your oncologist can explain what it means in your case.
Questions to ask your doctor
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More words from this kind of report
Other guides in stage, grade & treatment response.
Your next step
Plain-language definitions for both sides of the comparison.
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Last updated: 2026-10-16Next planned review: 2027-07-12
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Cancer Explained does not originate medical claims. Every page restates guidance already published by the National Cancer Institute, the CDC, the USPSTF and the FDA, in plain language, with the source cited so you can check the original yourself. AI does the translating and organizing; automated checks test claims, citations, clarity and safety before anything publishes, and this is translation and navigation, not clinical judgment. Nothing here is personal medical advice, and no page can account for your particular situation.
Editorial status: Source checked — This page was written with AI assistance and then compared with the sources listed on it, looking for statements those sources do not back up. That check is not a sentence-by-sentence record and can miss errors. It is not a medical review, and it does not confirm the page is complete or right for your situation.
Human medical review: not completed. Pages here are not signed off by a clinician before they publish. That is not an oversight we are quietly working around: we restate published guidance and cite it, so the authority belongs to the source rather than to us, and every page names where its claims come from — you can verify us instead of trusting us. Where a volunteer clinician has reviewed a page, their name and credentials appear on it; where no name appears, no clinician has checked it. We are glad to have reviewers and are recruiting them, and we do not hold pages back waiting for one. Use this site to understand your situation and to ask better questions of the people treating you.
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