Lung Cancer

January, 2018: A study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute found that those with severe gum disease were at significantly higher risk of developing various cancers.  Those with severe gum disease were found to have more than double the risk of developing lung cancer compared to those with no or mild gum disease.

Researchers used data from a study of lung cancer patients in New York from 1982 to 1985.  They focused on patients who had never smoked, or those who hadn't smoked in the last 10 years, then took into account physical data on patients' heights and weight.  Researchers found that study subjects who were at the most extreme levels of obesity had the highest risk of lung cancer.  The study is a first for linking being overweight to lung cancer; it has previously been shown to play a role in breast, uterine, and colon cancer.

Researchers are unsure why being obese plays a role in lung cancer; some researchers suggest it's related to hormones such as higher levels of estrogen and insulin.  In addition, being overweight puts an added strain on the lungs, reduces lung capacity, and increases asthma risk. [American Journal of Epidemiology Sept. 2000]

October, 2017: A major Chinese study involving 600,000 subjects reported that daily aspirin use results in a 35% reduced risk of developing lung cancer.

Human epidemiological studies demonstrate an association between diesel exhaust exposure and increased lung cancer rates in occupational settings.  A preliminary report, still undergoing review by experts, states that "For carcinogenic hazard and risk of cancer over a lifetime, the EPA is recommending that exposure (to diesel exhaust) be viewed as likely to pose a risk at low levels, as well as high levels."

The draft report, which can be accessed at the agency's website at www.epa.gov, is based on an overview analysis of dozens of animal- and human-based studies.  It explains that the particulate matter found in diesel fumes is very small in diameter and thus able to penetrate deeply into the lungs upon inhalation.  The report authors also note that "light-duty diesel engines emit 50-80 times and heavy-duty engines 100-200 times more particulate matter than catalytically equipped gasoline engines."

Over many years, the danger of breathing soot-filled air in polluted cities is comparable to the health risks associated with long-term exposure to second-hand smoke, according to a study funded by the NIH and US EPA.  The study assessed the impact of particles smaller than 2.5 micrometers, called fine particulate matter, in cities across the United States.  Data was gathered from 500,000 adults who were followed from 1982 to 1998 as part of an ongoing cancer study.  The study concluded that a 10mcg increase per cubic meter in fine particulate matter caused an 8% increase in the number of deaths from lung cancer. [Environmental News Service March 6, 2002]

2017: The UK's largest cancer surgery center, London's Brompton Hospital and Harefield NHS Trust, estimated that the number of lung cancer deaths among people who have never smoked would overtake deaths from smoking-related cancer within a decade if air pollution levels continue to rise at the current rate.

Although smoking has been linked to lung cancer, the risk of developing it may be increased more by fatty acid consumption while smoking, rather than by the smoking itself.  Lung cancer was not so much of a problem for smokers until polyunsaturated oils such as corn, safflower and sunflower were added to the diet during the 1950s in the United States.  Even among smokers, a low fatty acid diet will reduce the likelihood of getting lung cancer.

Although smoking has been linked to lung cancer, the risk of developing it may be increased more by fatty acid consumption while smoking, rather than by the smoking itself.  Lung cancer was not so much of a problem for smokers until polyunsaturated oils such as corn, safflower and sunflower were added to the diet during the 1950s in the United States.  Even among smokers, a low fatty acid diet will reduce the likelihood of getting lung cancer.

See the link between Cancer (General) and Hydrazine Sulfate.

Chemicals found in broccoli, cabbage, bok choy and other cruciferous (cabbage family) vegetables may protect against lung cancer, according to a new study conducted jointly with US and Chinese researchers.  Although the chemicals did lower cancer risk by 36% in this study, smoking alone increases lung cancer risk by as much as 10 times.

Although lung cancer tissue is low in opioid receptors and thus not so likely to respond to LDN, there may be benefit due to LDN's ability to increase natural killer cell function.

A double-blind study demonstrated that supplementation with 200 mcg/day of selenium (in the form of high-selenium brewer's yeast) reduced the incidence of prostate, colorectal and lung cancer, and reduced overall cancer mortality by 50%. [JAMA 1996;276: pp.1957-63]