Effects of Tobacco Smoking on the Survivability of Patients with Multiple Cancers and Single Lung Cancer

Abstract

Lung cancer is the leading cause of death worldwide among men and women. Tobacco smoking is the number one risk factor for lung cancer. The aim of our study was to evaluate the survivability of patients with single lung cancer in relation to the survival time in patients with multiple neoplasms whose last neoplasm was a lung cancer. A retrospective analysis was con-ducted of data from medical histories of patients hospitalized at the Pulmonary Hospital in Olsztyn (Poland) from 2012 to 2017, with a lung cancer diagnosis as the first or subsequent cancer. The total longevity of women with diagnosed multiple cancers was found to be shorter than that of men: 67.60 years (SD: 7.77) and 69.91 years (SD: 7.97), respectively. Among the ex-smokers, the longevity of men (68.93 years) was longer than that of women (66.18 years). Survival time, counted from the diagnosis of both the first and subsequent cancer, was longer among patients with multiple cancers than among patients with single lung cancer (p = 0.000). Women’s survivability was worse than men’s in the case of multiple cancers and in the group of people who quit smoking (p = 0.037; p = 0.000). To conclude, smoking tobacco affects the survival of patients with lung cancer. Smoking cessation improves overall survival.