Breast cancer patients who continue to smoke after radiation therapy have a much higher risk that the treatment will cause lung cancer in the future, a new study shows.
In the UK, two out of three people diagnosed with breast cancer at the onset of the disease receive radiotherapy. This is a long-term and very effective treatment, but it also has potential side effects.
Radiation therapy reduces the risk of breast cancer coming back after treatment, as well as the risk of death from the disease, but the dangers that come with this procedure may include a higher risk of death from heart disease, r or esophageal cancer.
The risk for smokers, 6 times higher
The new findings show that breast cancer patients who do not smoke have less than a 1% chance that radiation therapy will lead to lung cancer in later years. On the other hand, for those who smoke when they are treated and do not quit after the procedures, their risk is between 2% and 6%, it shows.
The results come from research conducted in the UK and led by Carolyn Taylor, professor of oncology at the University of Oxford.
“Radiotherapy is very good at treating cancer. In the case of breast cancer, it reduces the chances of the cancer coming back in the future,” said Taylor.
“Smokers must be warned and helped”
“But it’s also important to consider the risks. One of the long-term risks of radiotherapy is that it can cause many years later. This is a rare side effect, but it is important to consider”, adds the specialist.
Deborah Arnott, chief executive of Action on Smoking and Health, said smokers undergoing radiotherapy “need to be warned about the risks of continuing to smoke and given the support and encouragement they need”.
“Continuing to smoke, and this is true for any cancer treated with radiation therapy, not just breast cancer, makes the treatment itself more unpleasant and less effective, with an increased risk of the cancer coming back later,” says Arnott .
Cancer Research UK recently recognized smoking as a cause of breast cancer for the first time, alongside already known risks such as diet and genetics.
