By AFP - Agence France Presse
Air pollution fuels lung cancer among non-smokers: Study
Air pollution is fueling an increase in the most common form of lung cancer among non-smokers, particularly affecting women and people from Southeast Asia, according to a study published on Tuesday.
Lung cancer is the most common form of the disease, with 2.5 million people diagnosed in 2022, said the study, published in the journal Lancet Respiratory Medicine on World Cancer Day.
Most of them were men, but there was a growing share of almost a million cases among women.
An important subtype of lung cancer - adenocarcinoma - has become predominant among women in 185 countries, the authors wrote in the Chinese-funded study.
“Air pollution can be considered an important factor that explains, in part, the emerging predominance of adenocarcinoma, responsible for 53% to 70% of lung cancer cases among people who have never smoked worldwide,” said the study.
They found that lung cancer grew among both men and women from 2020 to 2022, with the highest level among women, where it accounted for around six in 10 cases.
“As smoking prevalence continues to decline in many countries around the world, the proportion of lung cancer in people who have never smoked has increased,” the researchers added.
“Lung cancer in people who have never smoked is estimated to be the fifth leading cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide, occurring almost exclusively as adenocarcinoma and more commonly in women and Asian populations.”
The study presented statistical research based on data from monitors, including the World Health Organization.
The researchers said that the highest levels of adenocarcinoma linked to air pollution were detected in East Asia, especially in China.
“Exposure to household burning of solid fuels for heating and cooking may be a causal factor of lung cancer” among non-smoking Chinese women, they added.
ref/ic/dsa/rlp/gil
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