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Cancer in Australia: an overview, 2008 (PDF) 

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7 Cancers attributed to smoking and excessive alcohol consumption in 2005

Data on cancers attributed to smoking and excessive alcohol consumption are derived from a series of age- and sex-specific aetiological fractions developed by Ridolfo and Stevenson (2001) and are summarised in Appendix E. These fractions are based on an analysis of international and Australian studies and estimate the probability that a specific agent (tobacco or excessive alcohol) causes a specific disease (cancer).

While tobacco and alcohol have each been associated with cancer in their own right, they often occur together and may interact to produce higher or lower risks. To the extent possible, the estimates of the aetiological fractions have been derived to represent the independent contribution of each risk factor. However, it is not possible to allow for all the complexities of the interactions between risk factors using this methodology. Hence the fractions for tobacco and alcohol cannot be summed to give a combined effect of the two risk factors.

7.1 Main findings

In 2005 there were an estimated 11,308 new cases of cancer and 8,155 deaths from cancer that can be attributed to smoking. This represents over 11% of cases and nearly 21% of cancer deaths. . . .

8.7 Lung cancer

For lung cancer, the highest age-standardised incidence rate occurred in the Northern Territory (53.6 cases per 100,000 persons), followed by Tasmania (50.5), Western Australia (46.1), Queensland (45.0), Victoria (42.4), South Australia (42.0), New South Wales (41.6) and the Australian Capital Territory (31.8).

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Cancer in Australia: an overview, 2008: Summary 

Cancer in Australia: an overview, 2008 is a joint report by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) and the state and territory members of the Australasian Association of Cancer Registries (AACR). It presents the numbers of new cases of cancer and cancer deaths in 2005 as well as projections for 2006 to 2010. A wealth of other topics are covered, such as incidence of lymphohaematopoietic cancers using a modern classification scheme, cancers attributed to smoking and excessive alcohol consumption, incidence in the states and territories, incidence rates over the life span, cancer survival, cancer prevalence, cancer-related hospitalisations, the cancer screening programs and the burden of cancer. . . .

In both sexes the five biggest killers, in order, are lung cancer, prostate cancer (males)/breast cancer (females), colorectal cancer, cancer of unknown primary site and pancreatic cancer. For females, lung cancer overtook breast cancer in 2005 to become the biggest cancer killer of females for the first time. It is projected that lung cancer deaths in females will accelerate away from breast cancer deaths. This trend is caused by the increasing rates of smoking observed in women in the 1970s and 1980s. By contrast, male smoking rates were decreasing during this period and their lung cancer incidence and death rates today are also declining.

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• Cancer in Australia: an overview, 2008 (AIHW) 

Cancer in Australia: an overview, 2008 presents comprehensive national data on cancer incidence and mortality in 2005 and projections for 2006 to 2010. Other topics covered include incidence of lymphohaematopoietic cancers using a WHO-based classification scheme, cancers attributed to smoking and excessive alcohol consumption, incidence in the states and territories, incidence rates and most common cancers over the life span and cancer-related hospitalisations.

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• Cancer is on the increase in Australia 

According to the latest information cancer is on the increase in Australia.

In a report by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare on cancer statistics for 2008 new cancer cases are expected to increase by over 3,000 cases per year.

The report shows that the number of new cancer cases diagnosed in Australia each year passed the 100,000 mark for the first time in 2005 and the number of new cases in 2008 is estimated to be over 108,000.

The report, Cancer in Australia 2008, has revealed that the major impact cancer has already had on the health system is all set to continue and the number of cancer-related hospital admissions is projected to rise by over 23,000 per year in the short term. . . .

The AIHW report also shows that Tasmania has some of the highest cancer rates in the country with an annual average of 433 cases per 100,000 people and lung cancer is overtaking breast cancer as a killer of Tasmanian women - Tasmania continues to have, high rates of smoking and the Cancer Council says the figures are alarming.

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Tassie cancer rate shock  

TASMANIA has the country's highest cancer rate, excluding skin cancers, after taking into account its older population. . . .

Lung cancer is second only to the Northern Territory.

And lung cancer nationally has passed breast cancer as the biggest killer of Australian women, although breast cancer is more common.

It has been Tasmania's top killer of women for several years.

Senior Hobart oncologist Ray Lowenthal said Tasmania's cancer rates were a blow.

"It's an indictment on the community that so many people are still smoking. Cancer of the oesophagus, pancreas, bladder, kidney and mouth and throat are all related to smoking," Professor Lowenthal said.

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Yes, you can love your tobacco...till death  

Prof Paluri Murti, an expert on oral cancer, recently delivered a lecture titled "I Love Tobacco. Is it Harmful to my Mouth?"

The answer, he said, is yes.

In an interview with the Express, Murti said that 90 per cent of oral cancer victims develop it because of tobacco use.

The Indian-born professor of oral pathology is the director of the University of the West Indies' Dental School, and was part of a renowned group of international researchers who pioneered research in India on oral cancer and pre-cancerous lesions in relation to tobacco usage. . . .

Smokers in this country puff over half a billion cigarettes every year, ranking Trinidad and Tobago as one of the top tobacco consumers worldwide.

And joining the over quarter million adults who light up on average five times a day are thousands of schoolchildren between 13 and 15.

A Global Youth Tobacco Survey in 2004 ranked T&T as having the fourth highest smoking prevalence in the age group. About 40 per cent of young people are also exposed to second-hand smoke, called passive smoking at home.

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Smoking Status Important in Evaluating Colorectal Cancer Risk 

Smoking is associated with development of colorectal cancer and the likelihood of dying from it, according to a meta-analysis.

In an analysis of 106 observational studies, individuals who had smoked at some point in their lives were 18% more likely to develop colorectal cancer than those who had never smoked (RR 1.18, 95% CI 1.11 to 1.25), said Edoardo Botteri, M.Sc., of the European Institute of Oncology here, and colleagues.

And in an analysis of 17 studies, those who had smoked were 25% more likely to die from colorectal cancer than those who had never smoked (RR 1.25, 95% CI 1.14 to 1.37), the researchers reported in the Dec. 17 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

"We believe that smoking represents an important factor to consider when deciding on the age at which colorectal cancer screening should begin," they said, "either by lowering the age in smokers or increasing the age in non-smokers."

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Smoking Associated With Increased Risk For Colorectal Cancer And Death 

An analysis of previous studies indicates that smoking is significantly associated with an increased risk for colorectal cancer and death, according to a new article.

Although tobacco was responsible for approximately 5.4 million deaths in 2005, there are still an estimated 1.3 billion smokers in the world. While a number of cancers are attributable to smoking, the link between cigarette smoking and colorectal cancer (CRC) has been inconsistent among studies. "Because smoking can potentially be controlled by individual and population-related measures, detecting a link between CRC and smoking could help reduce the burden of the world's third most common tumor, which currently causes more than 500,000 annual deaths worldwide. In the United States alone, an estimate of approximately 50,000 deaths from CRC would have occurred in 2008," the authors write.

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Smoking and Colorectal Cancer: A Meta-analysis 

Data Extraction Articles were reviewed and data were extracted and cross-checked independently by 3 investigators, and any disagreement was resolved by consensus among all 3.

Results

One hundred six observational studies were included in the analysis of incidence. Twenty-six studies provided adjusted risk estimates for ever smokers vs never smokers, leading to a pooled relative risk of 1.18 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.11-1.25). Smoking was associated with an absolute risk increase of 10.8 cases per 100 000 person-years (95% CI, 7.9-13.6). We found a statistically significant dose-relationship with an increasing number of pack-years and cigarettes per day. However, the association was statistically significant only after 30 years of smoking. Seventeen cohort studies were included in the analysis of mortality. The pooled risk estimate for ever vs never smokers was 1.25 (95% CI, 1.14-1.37). Smoking was associated with an absolute risk increase of 6.0 deaths per 100 000 person-years (95% CI, 4.2-7.6). For both incidence and mortality, the association was stronger for cancer of the rectum than of the colon.

Conclusion

Cigarette smoking is significantly associated with colorectal cancer incidence and mortality.

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New Cancer Cases and Overall Disease Mortality Rates Decline  

Cancer mortality rates dropped an average of 1.8% per year from 2002 through 2005, while the number of new cases fell an average of 0.8% per year from 1999 through 2005, according to the Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer, published in the Dec. 3 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. . . .

Gender differences in lung cancer deaths and incidence reflects the "later uptake of cigarette smoking among women," who took up the habit after World War II, whereas men started smoking in the early 20th century, the researchers said.

The researchers said there are a few explanations for the lack of decline in lung cancer incidence and death rates among women. First, age-specific incidence and death rates continue to increase for those ages 70 and over. Rates in this age group heavily influence trends, since they contribute to more than 50% of the age-standardized rates. Also, smoking cessation rates are historically lower in women than in men.

Another reason may be that incidence and death rates vary regionally in the U.S., and that's likely because of variations in public awareness of the ill health effects of tobacco, social norms, and educational levels within the state. The report showed that lung cancer incidence varied significantly by state and region.

The lowest lung cancer incidence rates were found in Utah (39.6% per 100,000 men and 22.4 per 100,000 women) while the highest were found in Kentucky (136.2 per 100,000 men and 76.2 per 100,000 women).

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• Smoking Ups Colon Cancer Risk  

Adding to the long list of cancers caused by smoking, Italian researchers report that the risk of getting colorectal cancer is higher in smokers, as is the risk of dying from that disease.

Smoking increases the risk of developing colorectal cancer by about 18 percent and the risk of dying from the malignancy by about 25 percent, according to the study, which was published in the Dec. 17 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

"Smoking is significantly associated with colorectal cancer incidence and mortality," said the study's lead author, Edoardo Botteri, a biostatistician in the division of epidemiology and biostatistics at the European Institute of Oncology in Milan, Italy.

"People should be aware that smoking increases the risk of cancer not only in organs where there is direct contact with tobacco-related carcinogens, such as lung, oropharynx, larynx and upper digestive tract, but also in organs where exposure to tobacco degradation products is indirect, such as the pancreas, kidney, bladder, cervix, colon and rectum," explained Botteri. . . .

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Many mouth cancers found too late 

The majority of these cancers are found too late, causing many people to die within five years of finding out they have cancer. There exists much information addressing issues related to the patient who has undergone surgery or chemotherapy but little information related to early diagnosis and referral. In a new article in the Journal of Prosthodontics, researchers led by Michael A. Siegel, DDS, MS, FDS, RCSEd, describe the epidemiology of oral cancer and the diagnostic tools currently available to prosthodontists to ensure that their patients are diagnosed at the earliest possible time.

Although the need for prosthodontics was expected to decline with the promotion of preventive measures, it is actually increasing with the aging population. The highest risk of developing oral cancer is in adults over 40 who use both tobacco and alcohol. However, these cancers can develop in anyone, so annual prosthodontist visits are increasingly important.

The majority of oral, head and neck cancer are initially diagnosed in a late stage, which has a five year prognosis of less than 50 percent.

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LICHTENFELD: Confronting a Top Killer: The Cancer Threat 

Here at our National Home Office in Atlanta, the American Cancer Society is joining with the Lance Armstrong Foundation, the Susan G. Komen for the Cure, and the International Agency for Research on Cancer to highlight the worldwide burden of cancer, and what must be done around the globe to stem this needless tide of despair and death.

In the last 30 years of the 20th century, the global burden of cancer more than doubled. That trend is projected to continue, and by 2030 there could be 27 million newly diagnosed cases of cancer, 17 million deaths each year and 75 million people alive with cancer within five years of diagnosis.

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World Cancer Day 

Each year on 4 February, WHO joins with the sponsoring International Union Against Cancer to promote ways to ease the global burden of cancer. Preventing cancer and raising quality of life for cancer patients are recurring themes.

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Cancer to Surpass Heart Disease as World's Leading Killer  

By 2010, cancer will be the leading killer in the world, surpassing heart disease, causing more deaths than AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis combined.

Unless new treatments are found, there could be 27 million people with cancer by 2030, and 17 million cancer deaths annually. And, there could be 75 million people living with cancer within five years after diagnosis, according to a new report, 2008 World Cancer Report, released Tuesday by the World Health Organization.

"The burden of cancer is shifting from developed countries to developing nations," Dr. Otis Webb Brawley, chief medical officer of the American Cancer Society, said during a teleconference. "And with a growing and aging population, we must take steps to address this problem now."

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