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Smokers with advanced colon cancer may face higher odds of disease recurrence 
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Source: Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (May 29, 2008)

Smokers with advanced colon cancer may face higher odds of disease recurrence


CHICAGO--People with advanced colon cancer who have smoked cigarettes or used other
tobacco products for many years may have an increased risk that their colon cancer
will return, according to research by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute scientists to
be presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology
(ASCO), May 30-June 3, in Chicago.

Based on data from 965 patients treated for stage III colon cancer, investigators
found the chances of recurrence or death up to 22 percent higher in patients with
a 20 or more pack year history (calculated by number of years smoking times packs
per day) than in those who had never smoked. Smoking history prior to age 30 was
particularly harmful for subjects that developed colon cancer years later. Patients
who smoked 12 pack years or more before age 30 and developed colon cancer later
in life had a statistically significant 37 percent increase in recurrence or death
compared to nonsmokers.

The data (abstract 4039) will be presented during a poster session on Monday, June
2, 8 a.m. - 12 p.m. CT, South Building, Hall A1.

"After controlling for other factors that may influence the risk of colon cancer
recurrence or death, this study highlights further risk of cancer recurrence in
individuals who have a higher lifetime total use of cigarettes than never smokers,"
said lead author Nadine Jackson, MD, MPH, of Dana-Farber.

Although tobacco use can increase people's initial risk of colon cancer, little
is known about the short- or long-term effects of such use on disease recurrence.
The current study is part of an effort to explore that issue.

Participants in the study reported their tobacco use on questionnaires filled out
during and six months after their treatment. Forty-five percent were identified
as past smokers, 9 percent as current smokers, and 46 percent as never smokers.

The study's co-authors are Jeffrey Meyerhardt, MD, MPH, Charles Fuchs, MD, MPH,
and Robert Mayer, MD, of Dana-Farber, Boston; Donna Niedzwiecki, PhD, and Donna
Hollis, PhD, of the Cancer and Leukemia Group B, Durham, N.C.; and Leonard Saltz,
MD, of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York.

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (www.dana-farber.org) is a principal teaching affiliate
of the Harvard Medical School and is among the leading cancer research and care
centers in the United States. It is a founding member of the Dana-Farber/Harvard
Cancer Center (DF/HCC), designated a comprehensive cancer center by the National
Cancer Institute.  
 


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  • Dana Farber Cancer Institute
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  • Colon Cancer Book Section: CancerNews.com
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  • CollegeBooks.com - Medical Bookstore - Nursing Textbooks - Surgical Textbooks - Medical Oncology Books - Surgical Oncology Books - Nursing Oncology Books - College Textbooks
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  • Colon Cancer Articles: CancerNews.com
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  • Cancer News - Cancer Information
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