What percentage of smokers get lung cancer?
Some of the answers here are amazingly stupid. Approximately 8% of white male smokers in the United States will get lung cancer. White male non-smokers have a 1% chance of getting lung cancer.
What percentage of smokers develop cancer or emphysema?
Very few lifetime smokers used to get lung cancer and less than half, any kind of cancer. The only honest statistics come from Europe where public medicine is common and medical records cover everyone. Also, they are the only places, I know of, where true “studies” have been conducted. The biggest study, in England around 1950 found that only 10% of lifetime smokers got lung cancer.That is dramatically different from U.S. claims that are not based on true studies, but on the dogma of the U.S. medical industry. In 1950, there were few desk jobs anywhere, and the statistics show that most chronic diseases are associated with lost muscle mass (frailty), and I remember that cancer was rare in the ‘50’s and 60’s, compared to now, when it is seen earlier and earlier in age. COPD, Emphysema and non-cancer lung diseases are very common results of smoking, and I believe they are directly related.I do believe that cancer is a break-down of cellular protections due to frailty, and can occur anywhere in the body and whether one smokes, or not. A fair study would consider degree of frailty in cancer.Some (older?) fair articles worth considering:Smoking's Many Myths ExaminedHigh Cumulative Risk of Lung Cancer Death among Smokers and Nonsmokers in Central and Eastern Europe | American Journal of Epidemiology | Oxford Academic
Do all smokers get lung cancer?
While it likely depends heavily on how much you smoke and for how long throughout your life, the best figure would probably be that over 95% of regular younger smokers will NOT get lung cancer in their lifetime. Some of them will never smoke all that heavily, and some will quit smoking after 1, or 5, or 20 years and their risks will thus be lower.Lifelong smokers smoking up into their 50s through 80s have a statistically higher risk of lung cancer that would tend toward 10% or, for heavy smokers, even a bit higher. If the smoker ALSO has exposure to other airborne carcinogens (e.g. asbestos, industrial fumes, etc) the chances could range up toward the 25%+ range, but anything that high would be VERY unusual!MJM, a smoker, not a doctor…
What percentage of cigarette smokers die from lung cancer?
Around 20%, according to one study; some others put the figure a bit lower.However, it’s not as easy as it sounds to answer this with a single statistic.Bear in mind a few important points that follow, but please note that I am not trying to downplay the smoking-lung cancer link here - I’m just trying to explain to you why there isn’t an absolutely certain, precise answer.• It depends substantially on how long the person smoked for, and how much they smoked (and to a lesser extent on whether they are male or female).• As a result, some studies might say someone is an “ex-smoker” when actually they only smoked a very small amount for a few years, and count them into the category of smoking-related lung cancer deaths.• But another study might exclude them because of the short duration of their smoking or the small quantities they smoked.• Lung cancer generally affects older people. Thus, some smokers might die of something else (whether or not smoking-related) before they can develop lung cancer; so even if lung cancer was extremely likely for those individuals given their smoking habits and other risk factors, they nevertheless won’t show up in the statistics.• We can only show the relationship statistically. Smoking is clearly a very, very major risk factor for lung cancer - there is no doubt at all about that - but on the other hand, non-smokers do occasionally get lung cancer as well. This demonstrates that smoking is not the only risk factor, so we can’t confidently say that every single case of lung cancer in a smoker was caused by smoking.Also remember that lung cancer, despite all the publicity it receives, is not the only serious health harm that can be caused by smoking (nor, for that matter, is it the only kind of cancer related to smoking).Cardiovascular (heart) disease and other lung diseases such as COPD are arguably equal or more serious threats, but they get less attention because they are longer-term conditions, and because modern society tends to be a bit phobic about cancer in general.In reality, while most lung cancers occur in current or former smokers, most smokers do not get lung cancer.PS: You may also be interested in reading my discussion with Michael J. McFadden in the comments.
What percentage of smokers vs non smokers get lung cancer?
The risk of lung cancer is proportional to the amount and duration of smoking. We usually refer to this as the number of “pack-years,” i.e., one packet per day for one year equals a pack-year.There are also other modifiers such as the radon levels where you live. If you are a smoker and live in a high radon area your cancer risk will increase exponentially.Looking at the average smoker, the risk is approximately 10 times higher of getting lung cancer compared to the population of non-smokers.
What percentage of doctors are smokers?
From How many medical doctors smoke?In China, 32% of male doctors smoke (but 0% of females doctors smoke), in Italy 28% of doctors smoke (32% among men), and in Turkey or Bosnia & Herzegovina around 40% of doctors smoke.Some may be surprised to hear that as many as 5% of US doctors smoke.