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A new study conducted by American Cancer Society claims that one in ten cancer survivors continues smoking years after their diagnosis.
Researchers interviewed 3000 cancer survivors after nine years of their diagnosis. After the study they found that smoking rates are high especially among those who were diagnosed with smoking related cancer. This type of smoking related cancer includes lung and bladder cancer.
The result of the study was posted in Wednesday’s Journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention.
The study shows just how difficult it is to quit smoking even you might have to face dire health consequences
The lead author Lee Westmaas, an American Cancer Society researcher, says this study shows just how difficult it is to stop smoking even when you might face dire health consequences.
According to the study, while one-third of the people who were smokers when diagnosed with cancer stop playing with fire, two-thirds continued to do that.
Adding much to worry it is also said by the researchers that those who continued smoking, smoked heavily. 83% of these people smoked on daily basis, inhaling 15 cigarettes daily on an average.
While 47% of cancer survivors said they were planning to quit, another 43% said they were “not sure”. The other 10% said they had no plans to quit.
It was found during the study that smoking was more common among women than men. Surprisingly, the hobbit of smoking was more prominent among those who had experienced a cancer recurrence than those who had not.
Chief of medical oncology at Yale University, Roy Herbst, who chairs a committee on tobacco and cancer for the American Association for Cancer Research, says, “I was surprised by the numbers being so high.” Herbst also add that smoking raises the risk of cancer recurrence. Besides, it makes some cancer therapies less effective.
