Association between head-and-neck cancers and active and passive cigarette smoking

Abstract

Although there have been many reports on the toxicity of tobacco smoke, fewer studies have reported the relationship between the smoke and carcinogenesis of head-and-neck cancers. It is assumed that direct stimulations due to tobacco smoke, such as chemical and mechanical stimulations, strongly influence the epithelium of the nasal cavity, paranasal sinuses, pharynx, and larynx. We investigated the influence of active and passive cigarette smoking on head-and-neck cancers. The subjects were 283 head-and-neck cancer patients examined at the otolaryngology department of Showa University Northern Yokohama Hospital in a 9-year and 2-month period from April 2001 to June 2010, in whom the presence or absence of active and passive cigarette smoking could be confirmed in detail. The active and passive smoking rates and the Brinkman index were retrospectively investigated according to the primary cancer site, gender, and histopathological classification. The active and passive smoking rates were high (about 90%) in patients with hypopharyngeal, laryngeal, and cervical esophageal cancers, and the Brinkman index was high in all. Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) patients accounted for a high ratio of the head-and-neck cancer patients, and the active and passive smoking rates were significantly higher in SCC than in non-squamous cell carcinoma (non-SCC) patients (p < 0.0003). The active and passive smoking rates and the Brinkman index were high in patients with head-and-neck cancers in regions receiving strong direct stimulation from tobacco smoke, and the Brinkman index was also high in these patients, suggesting that carcinogenesis of head-and-neck cancers is strongly influenced by direct tobacco smoke stimulation

Association Between Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma Survival, Smoking at Diagnosis, and Marital Status

“…Previous HNSCC studies have reported varying rates of smoking at diagnosis, ranging from 26.4% to 56% . Smoking rates tend to be heterogeneous across head and neck subsites, with the larynx having the higher rates and a greater likelihood of being associated with smoking . Our study confirms this.…”

“…9 Smoking rates tend to be heterogeneous across head and neck subsites, with the larynx having the higher rates and a greater likelihood of being associated with smoking. 9,36,37 Our study confirms this. We found that patients with laryngeal cancer had a significantly higher smoking rate than patients with cancer of the other subsites.…”

Effects of sidestream tobacco smoke on P53 expressions in Rattus novergicus tongue epithelial mucosa

“…Consequently, it is considered a risk factor of oral cancer in both active and passive smokers, influenced by the duration and dose of exposure to it. A previous study by Kushihashi et al (2012), 3 assessed the impact of the number of cigarettes smoked per day and the duration of smoking among active smokers or that of cigarette exposure among passive smokers on the occurrence of head and neck cancer. The study argued that smoking plays a significant role in the development of squamous cell carcinoma (p = 0.0338).…”

“…These include cancer of the oral cavity, pharynx and larynx, in addition to lung cancer. 3 The process of carcinogenesis is a somatic event thought to be caused by accumulative genetic and epigenetic changes affecting the normal molecular control settings in cell proliferation. These genetic changes can subsequently deactivate the tumor suppressor gene, thereby triggering tumor formation.…”

The correlation between exposure to cigarette smoke and the degree of mucosal epithelium-based dysplasia in Rattus norvegicus tongues

“…1 Worryingly, the population of passive smokers is reportedly outstripping that of active ones. 2 In fact, both categories of smoker run the risk of developing cancer since cigarettes contain various carcinogenic substances, such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) 3 , and Nitrosamines consisting of 4-(methylnitrosamino) -1-(3-pyridyl) -1-butanone (NNK) and N'-nitrosonornicotine (NNN). Each substance is known to have carcinogenic properties in relation to human beings.…”