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Smoking and other risk factors cause almost half of cancer deaths, study finds
Smoking, drinking alcohol, being overweight and other risk factors are responsible for almost half of all cancer deaths worldwide, according to the largest study of its kind. Researchers at the University of Washington’s school of medicine have become the first to determine how risk factors contribute to cancer deaths globally.
The leading risk factors globally for cancer deaths for both sexes were smoking, followed by alcohol use and high body mass index (BMI). .In total, the risk factors included in the study are responsible for nearly 4.45m cancer deaths a year, according to the findings published in the Lancet that used the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors (GBD) 2019 study. This represents 44.4% of all cancer deaths worldwide. Half of all male cancer deaths in 2019 (50.6%, or 2.88m) were due to estimated risk factors, compared with more than a third of all female cancer deaths (36.3%, or 1.58m).
Dr Christopher Murray, the director of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) at the University of Washington’s school of medicine and co-senior author of the study, said: “Smoking continues to be the leading risk factor for cancer globally, with other substantial contributors to cancer burden varying. Our findings can help policymakers and researchers identify key risk factors that could be targeted in efforts to reduce deaths and ill health from cancer regionally, nationally, and globally.”
Source: The Guardian, 18 August 2022
See also: The Lancet - The global burden of cancer attributable to risk factors, 2010–19: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019
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£25 vaping voucher stubs out smokers’ cravings
Researchers at the University of East Anglia have found that 42% of smokers who spent a £25 voucher at a vape shop were not smoking four weeks later. The scheme has spread across Norfolk, with calls for it to go nationwide.
GPs in a deprived part of Great Yarmouth were asked to refer smokers with long-term health conditions who had been unable to quit. Of the 668 people who were referred, 340 redeemed a voucher. After four weeks, 143 had stopped smoking, and 50 were still not smoking after 12 weeks.
Professor Caitlin Notley, the lead researcher and addiction expert at the university’s Norwich Medical School, said the findings were important because of the group that was targeted: "We particularly wanted to target vulnerable and disadvantaged smokers who had failed to quit smoking by other means […] It helped those who have tried and failed to quit smoking many times to move away from tobacco."
In Hampshire, the NHS’s Quit4Life scheme has been giving out £25 vaping vouchers since 2018, and Hazel Cheeseman, Deputy Chief Executive at ASH, said she would "welcome many more schemes being established around the country", but added that "vapes are important but not sufficient to help secure the government’s vision of a smoke-free country by 2030."
The study was commissioned by Norfolk County Council and led by the university. It is published in the journal Nicotine & Tobacco Research.
Source: The Times, 19 August 2022
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Is vaping bad for you? London doctor explains exactly how bad vaping really is for your health
There has been growing concern about the increasing popularity of disposable vapes among children and young people. The proportion of children who admit to ever having tried vaping has also risen from 14% in 2020 to 16% in 2022, according to research by ASH.
Vapes can play a key role in reducing the 78,000 people killed each year in the UK by smoking, however, while e-cigarettes are considered a significantly safer alternative to tobacco, they are not risk-free.
Consultant and Professor of Respiratory Medicine at Imperial College and Chest Physician at The Royal Brompton Hospital, Nick Hopkinson, told MyLondon: "Vaping is much, much safer than smoking, so if smokers switch across completely to vaping that will bring a big benefit to their health and the health of those around them. This is because the toxic materials that are present in cigarette smoke either aren’t in the vapour from e-cigarettes or if they are they are present at much lower levels. However, no serious commentator would describe vaping as completely safe, so in the long term people who have switched across from smoking should try to quit vaping too. People who don’t smoke some should definitely avoid vaping."
Child respiratory doctors and charities have criticised the government for failing to heed warnings about the risks of allowing e-cigarettes to be sold in child-friendly packaging containing the names of popular sweet treats.
Others have raised concerns that some products on sale in the UK are illicit and may contain banned chemicals or nicotine concentrations that exceed the legal limit.
Alizee Froguel, policy manager at Cancer Research UK, said: "Evidence to date shows that e-cigarettes are far less harmful than smoking tobacco and can help people to stop. But we strongly discourage those who have never smoked from using them, especially young people.[…]This is because they are a relatively new product, and we don’t yet know their long-term health effects. We support balanced evidence-based regulation on e-cigarettes from government which maximises their potential to help people stop smoking, whilst minimising the risk of uptake from people who have never smoked and young people especially.”
Source: My London, 16 August 2022
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US: FDA targets illegal nicotine gummies in new warning letter
Federal regulators on Thursday issued a first-of-a-kind warning to the maker of nicotine gummies, saying the illegal “candies” pose a growing risk to teenagers and younger children.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said the fruit-flavoured gummies from Florida manufacturer VPR Brands could cause nicotine poisoning or even death if eaten by small children. Regulators also cited recent research suggesting nicotine candies and similar products are becoming more popular among high school students.
In March, Congress passed a law granting the FDA authority over all forms of nicotine. This closed a loophole in FDA’s oversight, which until then only included nicotine from plants.
A recent FDA-funded study found oral nicotine products, such as gummies, were the second-most popular tobacco-free, nicotine-containing product used by high school students in Southern California, behind e-cigarettes. The FDA said Thursday's action is the first warning to a maker of nicotine gummies.
The FDA has come under intense congressional pressure after announcing last month it would miss a deadline to remove thousands of unauthorized synthetic nicotine products from the market. The agency said it is working as quickly as possible to review nearly 1 million marketing applications it received from 200 companies.
Source: The Independent, 18 August 2022
See also: Pediatrics - Adolescent Use of Flavored NonTobacco Oral Nicotine Products
Editorial note: According to the study cited in the article, 3.1% of students surveyed had ever used oral nicotine products. This figure drops to 0.85% in never users of either combustible or noncombustible tobacco products.
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University of Stirling post-doc fellowships
The University of Stirling is currently advertising for a number of 12-month post-doc fellowship posts to provide input on various research projects at the Institute for Social Marketing and Health. Most projects involve working in multi-institution teams, with networking opportunities such as through ISMH’s membership of the UK Prevention Research Partnership (UKPRP) SPECTRUM Consortium and the Public Health Policy Research Unit of the Department of Health.
The closing date for applications is midnight on Thursday 1 September 2022.
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Reddit discussion on 2007 UK smoking ban
A popular Reddit online community recently posted a question regarding which UK law had most improved people’s lives in the last 50 years. The most popular suggestion was the 2007 smoking ban. The discussion thread is linked below.
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ASH Daily News is a digest of published news on smoking-related topics. ASH is not responsible for the content of external websites. ASH does not necessarily endorse the material contained in this bulletin.
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