Study: Smoking Cessation Prior to Lung Cancer Surgery Is Beneficial

A study published in The Annals of Thoracic Surgery indicated that smoking cessation any time prior to surgery for lung cancer is beneficial, although a longer period of cessation might be more effective for reducing the risk of pulmonary complications. 

Researchers conducted a retrospective study of patients with stage I-III primary lung cancer who underwent resection between 2012 and 2016. They evaluated the rate of surgical mortality and morbidity based on smoking status. This study included 666 patients: 256 (38.4%) were never smokers and 410 (61.6%) were smokers.  

It's never too late to quit smoking before lung surgery https://t.co/YUgmJbnDSV

— Ray DuBois, MD, PhD (@Rndubois) January 16, 2019

The results showed significant differences between smokers and never smokers for 90-day mortality rates (2.0% vs 0%; P=0.025) and respiratory complications (22.3% vs 3.5%; P<0.001).  

A multivariate analysis showed that the following are predictors of pulmonary complications after resection: 

• Smoking (odds ratio [OR] = 2.8; P=0.017) 
• Forced expiratory volume 1.0/forced vital capacity <0.7 (OR=2.6; P=0.001) 
• Percent diffusing capacity of the lungs for carbon monoxide <40% (OR=4.2; P≤0.001) 
• Clinical stage of lung cancer (OR=2.3; P=0.005)  

Compared with never smokers, ORs for pulmonary complications at each cessation interval were 12.9 for current smokers (P<0.001), 10.3 for those who ceased smoking for 1 month (P<0.001), 8.5 for those who ceased for 1 to 3 months (P<0.001), 6.3 for those who ceased for 3 to 6 months (P=0.011), 6.0 for those who ceased for 6 to 12 months (P=0.003), and 5.0 for those ceased for more than one year (P<0.001). 

Lung cancer deaths for women are projected to increase worldwide. 

NYU researchers use Google AI to determine lung cancer type. 

Source: The Annals of Thoracic Surgery