Survival prognosis in patients with terminal cancer plays an important role in clinical decision-making, policy formulation, and end-stage patient with relatives. To date, foreign researchers have developed multiple survival prediction models based on patient clinical performance, biomarkers and other indicators, along with a large number of studies which have been externally verified, including Palliative Performance Scale (PPS), Palliative Prognostic Score (PaP), Delirium-Palliative Prognostic Score (D-PaP), and Palliative Prognostic Index (PPI), etc. China's research on this topic remains in the primary stage. Therefore, this article reviews the prognostic factors of terminal cancer and survival prediction models as well as applications, in order to provide references for the subsequent construction of survival prediction models for patients with terminal cancer in line with Chinese characteristics.