The 5-year survival rate of female breast cancer cases in Jordan and some of the factors that affected survival were measured. All Jordanian women newly diagnosed with breast cancer during 1997–98 were included. Data were obtained retrospectively from the Jordan Cancer Registry and hospital records. Of 838 women included, half were diagnosed between the ages 40 and 59 years. The overall Kaplan–Meier 5-year survival rate was 59.3%. Stage, laterality and grade had a significant effect on survival rate. However, Cox proportional regression showed that tumour stage was the only factor that significantly influenced survival analysis after controlling for other factors. Further studies are needed to confirm the results and to ensure the inclusion of other factors.