Smoking taking heavy toll of youth

Lung cancer is a devastating disease, accounting for more cancer deaths than any other cancer forms all over the world. In India, it was considered a rare form but is now increasingly being recognised.

It is a well-known fact that smoking is the leading instigator of lung cancer. With increasing prevalence of smoking, lung cancer too, has touched epidemic proportions in India.

Among those diagnosed with lung cancer, history of active tobacco smoking was found in 87 per cent of males and 85 per cent of females, while passive tobacco exposure was found in three per cent.

“Smoking, a main cause of lung cancer, contributes to 90 per cent of lung cancer deaths. Men who smoke are 23 times more likely to develop lung cancer.

Women are 13 times more likely, compared to never smokers,” says Dr Hemanth Vudayaraju, Surgical Oncologist at Apollo Hospital Cancer Centre, Jubilee Hills.

Tobacco smoking in India seems to have seized the youth more quickly than other age-groups and has reached pandemic levels.

A study found a four-fold increase between 1998 and 2010 in the prevalence of cigarette smoking among young adult men aged 15-29 years.

While all tobacco products bring with them health risks, smoking is by far the most life-threatening of all. With each puff of a cigarette, a user gets exposed to over 6,000 chemical constituents and 60 known carcinogens.

Medical technology has evolved and innovated over years to bring in meaningful innovative products and therapies for patients that add real value in better patient outcomes at appropriate costs and lead to enhanced quality of life.

If diagnosed early, lung cancer can be cured with surgery. With the help of a special type of surgical staplers made from Titanium, tumour(s) are removed from the lung.

This surgical procedure is cost-effective and the rate of complications is relatively low compared with other surgical procedures. Also, it is a safer way as it does not require a large incision in the chest; it is performed by making small holes.

Clearly, for India, the burden of lung cancer will grow to enormous proportions in the coming years. This calls for drastic measures aimed at discouraging the youth from smoking, to be taken. This will help reduce morbidity and mortality levels arising out of lung cancer.

Several public health programmes by the government focusing on lung cancer and its prevention have been running in the country.

Besides, there is an urgent need to focus the spotlight on lung cancer, and smoking as being the principal factor promoting this evil, along with benefits of cessation for those who smoke.