What is the life expectancy of someone who has COPD?

There are currently no formulas or rules to determine the life expectancy of individuals suffering from COPD, according to the Lung Institute. Although the disease ultimately causes death, there are a number of variables that determine the remaining length of time an individual with the disease has left to live.

Although there are no hard and fast rules to determine COPD life expectancy, researchers have constructed a general way to predict life expectancy by dividing the disease into stages: Stage 1, mild; Stage 2, moderate; Stage 3, severe; and stage 4, very severe. In general, higher stages of the disease correspond with a shorter life expectancy, reports Healthline.