Lung Cancer & Tobacco

Lung cancer is the biggest cancer killer everywhere. It kills more people than colorectal, breast, and prostate cancer combined. 1 out of 3 people who die in Louisiana from cancer, die from lung cancer.

Lung Cancer & Tobacco

Beating Back Lung Cancer and Tobacco-Use Together

More than 80% of lung cancers are caused by smoking, and that includes those killed by secondhand smoke. So if we don’t smoke, or don’t expose other people to smoke, we could wipe out most cases of lung cancer. To quit now, go http://www.quitwithusla.org/

Smoking doesn’t just cause lung cancer. It causes many other cancers too, including:

  • Oral cavity and throat
  • Larynx (voice box)
  • Esophagus
  • Stomach
  • Pancreas
  • Bladder
  • Kidney
  • Liver
  • Colorectal
  • Cervix
  • Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Smoking also causes heart disease, lower respiratory disease, and strokes – a few other top causes of death. Smoking is the single deadliest thing you can do to your body and it shows in the numbers. Want to save lives in Louisiana, the United States, and the world? Stop smoking and make sure people don’t start.

What We Do

LCP raises awareness and educates the public, providers, and legislators with materials about the dangers associated with tobacco and e-cigarettes. We also link users to our partners who help and support people who want to quit smoking. If you think you’re at high risk for lung cancer, see below about getting screened.

At QuitWithUs, LA you can enroll online or call 1-800-QUIT-NOW to get free 24/7 counseling help, along with medication information, a quit plan, and other resources. In addition, we have very specific information on Louisiana smokers, including how many of us smoke (both adults and kids), the effect of smoking on babies and small children, how much it contributes to death and disease, and more. Best of all may be the success stories from others who have quit. As the website says “You can do this, Louisiana!”

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The Louisiana Tobacco Control Initiative (TCI) offers free or low-cost, evidence-based tobacco treatment (including counseling and medication) to people across Louisiana.

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If you are a Louisiana resident who smoked a cigarette prior to Sept. 1, 1988 and want to quit, you can apply to get no-cost cessation services, including medications, individual/group counseling, telephone quit-line support and/or intensive cessation support services.

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Think you might be at high risk for lung cancer and want to be screened? Check out the Lung Cancer Screening Eligibility Chart and the Lung Cancer Fact Sheet to learn more.

Lung Cancer and Tobacco-Use Facts

Lung Cancer is The Top Cancer Killer in Louisiana, the U.S., and The World.

It is estimated to have caused an estimate 154,050 deaths in 2018. 2,580 of those were in Louisiana. Almost all of these deaths are preventable.

Big Tobacco Targets At-Risk Demographics.

The evidence shows that tobacco companies (also known as “Big Tobacco”) target populations more at risk for smoking, including young people and minorities. These quotes are from tobacco company employees:

“We don’t smoke that s***. We just sell it. We reserve the right to smoke for the young, the poor, the black and stupid.”

–[Giovanni, J, “Come to Cancer Country; USA; Focus,” The Times of London, August 2, 1992].

“Today’s teenager is tomorrow’s potential regular customer, and the overwhelming majority of smokers first begin to smoke while still in their teens… The smoking patterns of teenagers are particularly important to Philip Morris.”

–[Johnston, E. Myron, “Young Smokers: Prevalence, Trends, Implications, and Related Demographic Trends,” March 31, 1981, Bates No. 1000390803].

“Cherry Skoal is for somebody who likes the taste of candy, if you know what I’m saying.”

-[Freedman, A, “Juiced up: How a tobacco giant doctors snuff brands to boost their ‘kick,’” Wall Street Journal, October 26, 1994].

Tobacco Costs Taxpayers Billions of Dollars.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says smoking-related illnesses in the United States cost more than $300 billion each year – nearly $170 billion in direct medical care costs and more than $156 in lost productivity, including $5.6 billion due to secondhand smoke exposure. These figures do not include the added costs that smoking drives up in private insurance premiums. In Louisiana, smoking-related illnesses costs $1.89 billion in direct medical costs – including $803 million in Medicaid, as well as $2.49 billion in lost productivity. That amounts to an approximate $1,220 in taxes per Louisiana household. Get more economic stats about tobacco from the CDC. 

You Can Get Immediate Health Results When You Quit Smoking.

Quitting smoking at any time and at any age has benefits:

  • 20 minutes after your last cigarette, your heart rate drops
  • Within 2 weeks to 3 months after quitting, your heart attack risk begins to drop and your lung function begins to improve
  • 1 year after quitting, your risk of coronary heart disease is half of that of a smoker’s
  • 2 to 5 years after quitting, your stroke risk is reduced to that of a non-smoker’s and your risk for cancers of the mouth, throat, esophagus and bladder is halved at 5 years.
  • 10 years after quitting, your lung cancer death rate is about half of that of a smoker’s and your risk of kidney and pancreas cancer decreases
  • 15 years after quitting, your risk of coronary heart disease is back to that of a nonsmoker’s.

Check out more benefits from the CDC and ACS.

There Is Now A Lung Cancer Screening for High Risk People.

A test known as a low-dose CAT scan or CT scan (LDCT) can help find abnormal areas in the lungs that may be cancer. Doing annual LDCT scans to screen people at higher risk of lung cancer can save lives. Click here to find out if you’re eligible and where to get screened. 

Vaping & Electronic Cigarette (E - Cigs) Facts

E-Cigarettes Kill.

Severe lung disease deaths tied to e-cigs have risen into the double digits and reported cases have surged. The CDC has declared it a multi-state outbreak. Go to their website to get the most up-to-date lung injury information.

E-Cigarettes Are Dangerous, Even Lethal to Children.

Exposure to liquid nicotine in e-cig products can lead to cardiac arrest, seizure, coma, and respiratory failure in children. This is a growing problem: Between January 2012-April 2017, U.S. poison centers tracked 8,270 exposures in children under age 6, with 84% of those under age 3. Get the article information here.

E-Cigarette Manufacturers Are Marketing to Young People.

Research published in early 2018 found all video ads studied, “Included some youth-appealing content, with frequent use of emotional appeals, including happiness (68%), friendship (41%), sex (24%) and success (24%). Over half featured animation.” Access the article here.

The CDC Has Studied E-Cig Advertising in Depth.

  • E-cig companies have rapidly increased advertising spending, from $6.4 million in 2011 to $115 million in 2014.
  • Many of the themes used in cigarette advertising are also now being used to sell e-cigs – including sex, independence, and rebellion.
  • During the time e-cig ads have increased, e-cig use among US youth has also increased. From 2011-2014, e-cig use in the past 30 days increased from less than 1% to almost 4% among middle school students, and from less than 2% to 13% among high school students.
  • E-cigs are marketed in ways to make them look like other items, including cigarettes, cigars, pipes, pens, USB memory sticks, flash drives etc. These disguises help youth hide their e-cig use.
  • E-cig companies are marketing to youth with sweet-flavored products, including flavors like “Chocolate,” “Gummy Bear,” and “Cotton Candy.”
  • A report by 5 major health organizations – “The Flavor Trap: How Tobacco Companies Are Luring Kids with Candy-Flavored E-Cigarettes and Cigars,” – detailed how e-cig companies try to get youth hooked on e-cigs.

Most E-Cigarettes Contain Nicotine Extracted from Tobacco, Flavorings, and Additives.

These battery-operated inhalers are designed to deliver addictive nicotine – a toxic stimulant also found in cigarettes. Some consider e-cigs less harmful than cigarettes since they do not burn tobacco and may contain fewer toxic and cancer-causing chemicals. However, emerging evidence finds that e-cig users may be more addicted than traditional smokers, as there is no “end” to an e-cig, unlike a finite cigarette. There is also evidence that e-cigs are harmful to your health and the long-term effects are unknown.

E-cig Aerosol (Vapor) Can Contain Harmful Chemicals.

Diacetyl, for example, is a common ingredient used to add flavor to foods. However, diacetyl has been shown to cause chronic lung disease. Studies show that it (and other harmful chemicals) can be found in e-cig flavors: “At least one flavoring chemical was detected in 47 of 51 unique flavors tested. Diacetyl was detected above the laboratory limit of detection in 39 of the 51 flavors tested, ranging from below the limit of quantification to 239 μg/e-cigarette. 2,3-Pentanedione and acetoin were detected in 23 and 46 of the 51 flavors tested at concentrations up to 64 and 529 μg/e-cigarette, respectively.” Access the article information here.

The Long-term Health Effects of E-cigs Are Unknown.

Since e-cig use/vaping is relatively new to the scene, long-term and comprehensive studies are not yet complete. It will take years to know the long-term effects.

What We Do Know Now:

  • There is limited evidence showing that e-cigs may help some smokers quit traditional cigarettes, but new evidence shows that e-cig smokers may become even more addicted because an e-cig can be smoked indefinitely, while a traditional cigarette is finite. There are other proven, safe, and effective ways to quit – read more about the resources available to you on our Quit Smoking page.
  • Studies are finding that youth who use e-cigs are much more likely to smoke traditional cigarettes later.
  • There is evidence that e-cig users have a higher heart attack risk. It may be even more dangerous for smokers who use both traditional cigarettes and e-cigs, than just smoking alone. Read the full article here.

Think You Might Be At High Risk for Lung Cancer and Want to Be Screened?

Click here to find out if you’re eligible and to find a lung cancer screening location. 

Keep Reading

Every five years, we partner with other state health organizations to produce the Louisiana Comprehensive Cancer Control Plan (aka “The State Cancer Plan”). This extensive document contains statistics on preventable cancers, as well as screening recommendations, goals, objectives, and strategies to beat cancer. Download a copy here.

Want to know just how many people in Louisiana are suffering from lung cancer? Curious about the  specific demographics affected? The Louisiana Tumor Registry (LTR) is one of the top-ranked cancer registries in the United States. It provides the figures that help shape the nation’s cancer data picture, which, in turn, drives funding for prevention, research and more. LTR’s data also shapes policy and provide information to researchers and health experts, including us here at LCP at the LSU Health New Orleans School of Public Health. Visit their site to learn more.

What Your Community Is Doing

Louisiana Healthy Communities Coalitions

LHCCs are grassroots organizations working locally to help communities make healthy choices. Chronic diseases like cancer, heart disease, stroke, and diabetes are what most people die of – and tobacco use and obesity are the leading causes of chronic disease. Louisiana communities are deciding for themselves how they want to fight chronic disease and we are there to help. LCP provides resources to these grassroots organizations, whether they’re trying to go smoke-free or creating more bike lanes. Learn More on the Louisiana Healthy Communities Coalition site.