# Complete response (CR) and partial response (PR)

Source: https://onco.cc/terms/complete-response-term/  
OnCo record `complete-response-term` (Term). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

A complete response means every measurable trace of the cancer has disappeared on scans or in the marrow; a partial response means it has shrunk by at least 30% (RECIST) but is still there. Neither is the same as cure: microscopic disease can remain.

## Summary

Solid tumour responses are defined by RECIST 1.1 (complete: all target lesions gone and nodes <10 mm; partial: ≥30% decrease in summed diameters; progressive: ≥20% increase or new lesions; stable: neither); lymphoma uses Lugano and PET; leukaemia uses marrow blast count and count recovery (CR, CRi for incomplete recovery); myeloma uses IMWG (stringent CR, VGPR, PR). Complete responses are the strongest single-arm signal and, when durable, drive accelerated approvals; the proportion of complete responders and the depth of response (MRD, ctDNA clearance) increasingly predict long-term outcome. In neoadjuvant settings pathological complete response is judged on the resected specimen, and clinical complete response guides organ preservation.

## Fields

- Kind: Term
- Last checked: 2026-09-09
- Also known as: complete response; complete responses; complete remission; complete remissions; CR rate; CRi; CR/CRi; complete response rate; stringent complete response; sCR; partial response; partial responses; partial remission; PR rate; very good partial response; VGPR; stable disease; best response; best overall response; deep response; deep responses; complete response rates

## Sources

- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Response_Evaluation_Criteria_in_Solid_Tumors
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Response_Evaluation_Criteria_in_Solid_Tumors

## Connected records

- terms: [Blasts (leukaemic blast cells)](https://onco.cc/terms/blasts/), [Deauville score and PET-adapted therapy](https://onco.cc/terms/deauville/), [Duration of response (DoR) and disease control rate (DCR)](https://onco.cc/terms/duration-of-response-term/), [Induction therapy](https://onco.cc/terms/induction-therapy/), [Objective response rate (ORR)](https://onco.cc/terms/orr/), [Pathologic complete response (pCR)](https://onco.cc/terms/pcr/), [Progressive disease and radiographic progression](https://onco.cc/terms/progressive-disease/), [RECIST](https://onco.cc/terms/recist/), [Undetectable MRD (uMRD / MRD-negative)](https://onco.cc/terms/umrd/)
- fronts: [Drug Discovery Platforms](https://onco.cc/fronts/drug-discovery/)

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