Key takeaways:
- Roughly 53,000 of about 4.3 million people who smoke developed lung most cancers.
- The cohort additionally included 6,351 lung cancer-specific deaths.
- E-cigarettes embrace carbonyl compounds and poisonous metals.
SAN DIEGO — People who smoke who used digital cigarettes after quitting had extra threat for lung most cancers than those that stop however didn’t use e-cigarettes, in line with a research introduced on the American Thoracic Society Worldwide Convention.
Though e-cigarettes have turn out to be a well-liked various to standard tobacco smoking, their impression on lung most cancers stays unclear, Yeon Wook Kim, MD, assistant professor, division of pulmonary and demanding care drugs, division of inside drugs, Seoul Nationwide College Bundang Hospital, and colleagues wrote.
Knowledge had been derived from Kim Y, et al. Affiliation of digital cigarette use after standard smoking cessation with lung most cancers threat: A nationwide cohort research. Introduced at: American Thoracic Society Worldwide Convention; Might 18-22, 2024; San Diego.
“That is the primary giant population-based research to exhibit the elevated threat of lung most cancers in e-cigarette customers after smoking cessation,” Kim mentioned in a press launch.
For instance, the researchers mentioned, e-cigarettes embrace a few of the similar carbonyl compounds and poisonous metals which are recognized to be carcinogenic and are additionally present in standard cigarettes.
The research comprised 4,329,288 folks with a traditional smoking historical past who took half within the Nationwide Well being Screening Program between 2012 and 2014 in addition to in 2018, with follow-up via December 2021. The researchers stratified individuals into six classes based mostly on their smoking historical past and adjustments in behavior.
The cohort included 53,354 individuals who developed lung most cancers, with 6,351 lung cancer-specific deaths.
Former tobacco people who smoke reporting e-cigarette use 5 or extra years after quitting had been 2.69 (95% CI, 1.12-6.46) occasions extra prone to expertise a lung cancer-specific demise than former tobacco people who smoke with out e-cigarette use after 5 or extra years or quitting.
Equally, former tobacco people who smoke with e-cigarette use inside lower than 5 years of quitting had been 1.23 (95% CI, 1.09-1.39) occasions extra prone to develop lung most cancers and 1.71 (95% CI, 1.1-2.66) occasions extra prone to have a lung cancer-specific demise than these with out e-cigarette use with lower than 5 years of quitting.
The researchers additionally particularly checked out individuals aged 50 to 80 years with 20 or extra pack-years of tobacco smoking, representing a inhabitants prone to be referred for low-dose lung most cancers CT screenings based mostly on 2021 U.S. Preventive Companies Process Power and 2023 American Most cancers Society pointers.
Members on this group with e-cigarette use inside 5 or extra years of quitting tobacco had been 1.65 (95% CI, 1.05-2.58) occasions extra prone to develop lung most cancers and 4.46 (95% CI, 1.85-10.75) occasions extra prone to expertise a lung cancer-specific demise than these within the group with out e-cigarette use inside 5 or extra years.
People who smoke who used e-cigarettes inside 5 years of quitting on this group had a 1.26 (95% CI, 1.03-1.54) occasions higher threat for lung most cancers than those that didn’t use e-cigarettes inside 5 years of quitting.
Based mostly on these findings, the researchers concluded that there was a higher threat for lung most cancers and associated mortality for people who smoke who use e-cigarettes after quitting tobacco, particularly amongst these people who smoke who meet pointers for screenings.
Additionally, the researchers mentioned that clinicians ought to spotlight these dangers as a part of their smoking cessation interventions to scale back dangers for lung most cancers amongst their sufferers.
“Our outcomes point out that when integrating smoking cessation interventions to scale back lung most cancers threat, the potential harms of utilizing e-cigarettes as a substitute for smoking have to be thought of,” Kim mentioned.

