• E-mail
• Print
• RSS

Women smokers' cancer risk is double that of men

Respiratory Care Weekly, July 12, 2006

Women are twice as likely as men to develop lung cancer when they smoke, according to the July 12 Journal of the American Medical Association. Women are also more likely to survive lung cancer than men. Lung cancer, the single largest cancer killer of both sexes in the United States, strikes 90,000 men and 73,000 women annually, killing more women annually than the next two leading malignancies-breast cancer and colon cancer-combined.

Although researchers say they aren't sure why this might be, the evidence shows that preventive efforts aimed at young women may be key to lowering lung cancer incidence. It also supports the need for earlier lung cancer screening in female smokers, according to the Journal.

• E-mail to a Colleague
• Print
• RSS
• Archive