

July 3rd, 2013 in Cancer /


Researchers reviewed a range of information from 136 countries, including average , gross domestic product per capita, the price of cigarettes, , and the amount of PAHs emitted into the air. PAHs are a group of more than 100 chemicals, some of which are carcinogenic when inhaled or ingested. They most commonly come from and burning coal and wood.


"Analyzing data on a global scale revealed relationships between PAH emissions and smoking rates on the lung cancer death rates in each country," said Staci Simonich, a co-author of the study and toxicologist at OSU. "Ultimately, the strength of the relationships was determined by the country's ."


OSU's study also suggests that reducing smoking rates could significantly lessen lung cancer deaths in countries with a lower socioeconomic status, including North Korea, Nepal, Mongolia, Cambodia, Bangladesh and many others. Researchers found that lung in these countries negatively correlated with price – meaning cheaper cigarettes are often associated with higher levels of deaths from lung cancer.


"If the life expectancies were the same in all of the countries we reviewed, it's possible we would see a consistent relationship between PAH emissions and ," said Simonich, an OSU professor of environmental and molecular toxicology.




Provided by Oregon State University

"Study suggests reducing air-polluting PAHs may lower levels of lung cancer deaths." July 3rd, 2013. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-07-air-polluting-pahs-lung-cancer-deaths.html