Nonparametric bivariate estimation for successive survival times

Abstract

Several aspects of the analysis of two successive survival times are considered. All the analyses take into account the dependent censoring on the second time induced by the first. Three nonparametric methods are described, implemented and applied to the data coming from a multicentre clinical trial for HIV-infected patients. Visser’s and Wang and Wells methods propose an estimator for the bivariate survival function while G´omez and Serrat’s method presents a conditional approach for the second time given the first. The three approaches are compared and discussed at the end of the paper.