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Action on Smoking and Health
A National Legal-Action Antismoking Organization Entirely Supported by Tax-Deductible Contributions
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Female Smokers More Likely to Develop Lung Cancer [08/21-1]
Excerpts from: WCLC: Female Smokers More Susceptible to Tobacco Carcinogens
than Men
By Charlene Laino Doctor's
Guide [08/20/03]
Female patients who smoke are more prone to develop lung cancer than their male
counterparts, a new study confirms.
Using the International Agency for Research on Cancer's tumor suppressor gene
database, the researchers analyzed 1,775 lung cancer cases for mutations of
the TP53 suppressor gene. Specifically, they looked for mutations characterized
by an excess of G:C to T:A transversions, which are thought to be characteristic
of smoking-related cancers.
They found that G:C to T:A transversions were present in 26% of male smokers who developed any type of lung cancer, compared with 37% of female smokers who developed lung cancer. Also, such transversions were found in 31% of males who developed lung cancer despite a history of never smoking, compared with 12% of such females, the study showed.
Dr. Toyooka said the study shows for the first time that cancers in female
smokers have significantly more tobacco-related mutations. The finding may help
to explain the greater susceptibility of women to tobacco carcinogens, he added.
Also, hormones may play a role in explaining why female smokers are more prone
to developing lung cancer, Dr. Lam said, as estrogen makes cells more likely
to proliferate.
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