Bayesian Kaplan-Meier Analysis — Bayesian Nonparametric Survival Curve Estimation

Bayesian Kaplan-Meier analysis extends the classical Kaplan-Meier estimator by placing a prior distribution over the survival function and updating it with observed time-to-event data to obtain a full posterior distribution for the survival curve. This approach, rooted in Susarla and Van Ryzin's 1976 Dirichlet-process framework, yields credible intervals rather than confidence intervals and enables coherent incorporation of prior clinical knowledge, making it particularly valuable in small-sample or early-phase clinical settings.