Monday January 25, 17:42

Stop smoking even when lung cancer is diagnosed

During their lifetime, smokers have a twenty times higher risk of developing lung cancer compared to non smokers

Patients with lung cancer diagnosed at an early stage would double their chances of survival if they stop smoking immediately, compared with those who continue to smoke, according to a study published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) .

The results of this analysis of ten studies conducted by the team of Amanda Parsons of the University of Birmingham (UK) suggest that it is worthwhile to propose a treatment to aid smoking cessation in patients whose cancer was diagnosed early.

During their lifetime, smokers have a twenty times higher risk of developing lung cancer compared to non smokers. But it was unclear whether the act of stopping smoking after the diagnosis of cancer showed any benefit.

The data, which need to be supplemented by other studies, suggest that the increased risk of death is primarily due to the progression of the tumor.

Those who gave up smoking (during 5 years of the study) have a survival rate from 63 to 70%, against 29 to 33% among those who continue to smoke.

It's never too late to stop smoking, even when you have lung cancer.

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