Most probably when you hear about cancers being linked to smoking, the first thing that comes into your mind is lung cancer. Well, you have every reason to believe that smoking can indeed lead to lung cancer. In fact, 90 percent of lung cancer patients are smokers. And it is among the top causes of cancer deaths around the world. However, there are several other cancers being linked to smoking. It is either among the direct causes or one of the contributing factors in 30 percent of cancers. Smoking significantly increases your risk to also develop:
Bladder Cancer
Smokers are 5 times more at risk of developing bladder cancer. Statistics reveal that 50% and 30% of bladder cancer in men and women, respectively, is attributed to smoking.
Head and Neck Cancers
Smokers are also more likely to develop cancer of the mouth, throat, sinuses, and nasal cavities. 85% of these cases are linked to smoking, tobacco use, and alcohol abuse. And unfortunately the five-year survival rate for these cases is only 56%. This is normally blamed to people’s lack of awareness to these types of cancers.
Esophagus or Esophageal Cancer
Smokers are two times at risk of developing cancer of the esophagus. When a smoker inhales cigarette smoke, it damages the cells’ DNA in the esophagus. A pack of cigarettes daily doubles your risk factor.
Pancreatic Cancer
Thirty percent of the cancer of the pancreas is blamed to smoking. And smokers are 2 – 3 times more at risk of developing this type of cancer.
Kidney Cancer
Twenty percent of kidney cancer patients are smokers. And 90% of kidney cancer patients suffer from renal cell carcinoma, the most common type of this disease.
Stomach cancer and Colon Cancer
Smokers are twice more likely to develop stomach cancer. And smoking is blamed for the 12% death percentage in colon cancer patients. Chronic smoking increases the smokers’ risk factors. Tobacco smoke contains thousands of carcinogens, and when inhaled or swallowed, it damages the cells and tissues in the colon.
Acute Myelogenous Leukemia
Smokers are at greater risk of developing acute myelogenous leukemia or AML. Smoking is said to be responsible for the 25% of AML patients. The carcinogens from cigarette smoke are absorbed by the lungs and carried to the bloodstream where it destroys the blood cells and affect its production.
Ovarian Cancer
Ovarian cancer is now included in the list of diseases attributed to smoking. A study even suggest that women who smoked for at least 25 years increases their chance of developing ovarian cancer two times compared to those who never smoked.
Breast Cancer
Studies are now beginning to see the link of smoking to breast cancer. Women who started smoking at an early age are more likely to suffer from pre-menopausal breast cancer. And chronic smoking in women may lead to aggressive forms of breast cancers (hormone receptor-negative breast cancer).
Prostate Cancer
Similar to breast cancer, the link between smoking and prostate cancer requires further study, but the evidences linking them is quickly piling up. Studies conducted suggest that smoking increases the possibility that a smoker will develop prostate cancer, and die because of the disease.
