EON

Ottawa – The dangers of smoking are no secret. Its connection to deadly cancers of the lungs, mouth, and throat are well-known, but those may not be the only cancers that smokers need to worry about.

A new study has detailed the connection between smoking and the development of breast cancer. Though researchers and medical professionals have long suspected this link, this study provides some of the first conclusive evidence that young women who smoke are more likely to develop breast cancer later in life.

More than that, the study concluded that the impact was the same whether the woman smoked herself or whether she was merely surrounded consistently by secondhand smoke, which makes another compelling case for why smoking restrictions may be important in public places.

Despite the strong association, the study did not have enough evidence to create a direct causal link between tobacco smoke and breast cancer. However, the numbers speak for themselves. A woman’s chance of developing breast cancer is about one in seven. For women who smoke or who are exposed to secondhand smoke, the rate is about one in four or five. Even women who are already highly predisposed because of genetic factors see an increased risk after exposure to smoking.

The ultimate impact of smoking on a woman’s risk for breast cancer is also influenced by other factors. Some women have genetic tendencies that make smoking more dangerous for them, while the length of time and intensity of the exposure to smoking also plays a significant role in how much of an increased risk for breast cancer each individual woman may have. There is also evidence that the earlier women start to smoke, especially if it is done during the formative years of puberty, the higher their risk is for breast cancer later in life.