A recent study reveals that quitting smoking after a cancer diagnosis can significantly extend patients’ survival time by years.
Research from the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, published on October 31, revealed that cancer patients who started smoking cessation treatment within three months of their diagnosis successfully quit and saw a 22-26% reduction in cancer-related mortality.
The study also found that those who began treatment within six months of diagnosis and quit within three months had the most favorable outcomes, living an average of 3.9 years longer than those who continued smoking, who lived about 2.1 years. However, survival rates varied depending on the type and stage of cancer.
Lead author Dr. Paul Cinciripini stressed the importance of oncologists and patients prioritizing smoking cessation, noting that continued smoking after diagnosis can increase overall and cancer-specific mortality, accelerate disease progression and raise the risk of other smoking-related cancers. Smoking-related diseases claim about 480,000 lives annually in the United States.
The study followed 4,526 men and women aged 47 to 62 who received cancer diagnoses and underwent smoking cessation treatment. Over 95% of study visits were conducted via telemedicine. Smoking cessation was defined as self-reported quitting at 7-day, 3-month, 6-month, and 9-month follow-ups. Primary outcomes were recorded in the MD Anderson Cancer Registry.
A separate study by Yonsei University College of Medicine, published last year in the European Heart Journal, found that compared to non-smokers, those who began smoking after a cancer diagnosis faced a 51% higher risk of cardiovascular disease.
Conversely, successful quitters reduced their cardiovascular disease risk by 36% compared to those who continued smoking.
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