Smoking and Cancer n Facts: n 1/3 of all cases of cancer in the U.S. are attributed to smoking n Smoking a single cigarette lowers one’s life expectancy by 10.7 minutes n Smoking a pack of cigarettes (20) shortens a persons life by 3 1/2 hours

More Facts: n 90 % of lung cancer patients die within 3 years n 96% of lung cancer patients were smokers n Lung cancer incidence increases with number of cigarettes smoked per day

Smoking as a preventable disease. n n Cigarette smoking remains the leading preventable cause of death in the United States, accounting for approximately 1 of every 5 deaths (438,000 people) each year.

National Estimates   An estimated, 20.9 percent of all adults (44.5 million people) smoke cigarettes in the United States.   Cigarette smoking estimates by age are as follows: 18–24 years (23.6 percent), 25–44 years (23.8 percent), 45–64 years (22.4 percent), and 65 years or older (8.8 percent).   Cigarette smoking is more common among men (23.4 percent) than women (18.5 percent).

National Data n n Prevalence of cigarette smoking is highest among American Indians/Alaska Natives (33.4 percent), followed by whites (22.2 percent), African Americans (20.2 percent), & Hispanics (15 percent). n n Cigarette smoking estimates are highest for adults with a General Education Development (GED) diploma (39.6 percent) or 9–11 years of education (34 percent), and lowest for adults with an undergraduate college degree (11.7 percent) or a graduate college degree (8 percent).

Data (continued) n n Cigarette smoking is more common among adults who live below the poverty level (29.1 percent) than among those living at or above the poverty level (20.6 percent).

State Estimates n n In 2004, the state estimates for cigarette smoking varied widely, ranging from 10.5 percent in Utah and 14.8 percent in California, to 27.6 percent in Kentucky and 26.9 percent in West Virginia.

More State Estimates n n The highest state estimates for cigarette smoking among men were in Kentucky (29.3 percent), Mississippi (29.1 percent), and Alabama (29 percent); the lowest estimates were in Utah (11.7 percent), California (18.5 percent), and Idaho (19.2 percent).

(Continued) n n The highest estimates for cigarette smoking among women were in West Virginia (26.4 percent), Kentucky (25.9 percent), and Tennessee (25.3 percent); the lowest estimates were in Utah (9.4 percent) and California (11.1 percent).

Curing Cancer n Monoclonal Antibodies = created through genetic engineering, use the bodies immune system to attack cancer cells n Farnesyl Transferase Inhibitors = induces tumor regression and prevents the growth of new ones n “Anti-sense RNA” = blocks protein synthesis in cancer cells

Curing Cancer n Adenovirus = block host cells machinery n Inhibiting Telomerase = chromosomes lose telomeres without the enzyme, chromosomes biological clock is stopped, cancer can’t get very far if telomere is gone n Angiogenesis Inhibitors = Endostatin, Angiostatin

Cancer causing mutations accumulate over time:  Annual death rate from cancer climbs with age  Rate of cancer deaths increases steeply after age 40  Rate of cancer deaths increases even more steeply after age 60  Several independent mutations must accumulate to give rise to cancer  Cancer rates are higher in different geographic areas  Mississippi Delta (pesticide runoff)  U.S. = large intestine cancer (higher meat consumption)