Tobacco Control Has Saved Nearly 4 Millions Lives, Study Estimates

Tobacco control measures like anti-smoking campaigns and cigarette taxes have prevented nearly 4 million lung cancer deaths during the past five decades, a new American Cancer Society study estimates.

More than 3.8 million lung cancer deaths were averted due to substantial reductions in smoking, gaining a little more than 76 million years of extra life among Americans, researchers say in CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians.

“The substantial estimated numbers of averted lung cancer deaths and person-years of life gained highlight the remarkable effect of progress against smoking on reducing premature mortality from lung cancer,” lead investigator Dr. Farhad Islami, the ACS’ senior scientific director for cancer disparity research, said in a news release.

In fact, the number of averted lung cancer deaths accounts for roughly one-half of all cancer deaths that were prevented in recent decades, researchers said.

“However,” Islami added, “Despite these findings, lung cancer is still the leading cause of cancer death in the United States, and smoking-attributable morbidity and mortality from other cancers or diseases remain high.”

For the study, researchers analyzed federal health data from 1970 through 2022, estimating the expected number of cancer deaths for each year and comparing them to the deaths that actually occurred.

In all, more than 2.2 million expected lung cancer deaths in men and 1.6 million in women were averted during the five-decade period.

By race, the estimated number of lung cancer deaths averted was nearly 3.2 million for white people and more than 527,000 for Black Americans, results show.

The number of averted lung cancer deaths accounted for more than 51% of the estimated declines in overall cancer deaths.

“Reducing smoking through tobacco control has saved millions of lives and can save millions more in the future,” Islami said. “But we need a stronger commitment at the local, state, and federal levels to help further reduce smoking and substantially augment the progress against smoking-related mortality.”

Islami noted that it’s also important that such programs be targeted to groups that are at a higher risk of smoking.

“For example, smoking prevalence and lung cancer mortality rates in individuals with a high school diploma or lower education levels are 5 times higher compared with individuals with a college degree,” he said.

Lisa Lacasse, president of ACS’s advocacy affiliate, the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, said the findings underscore the persistence of preventable deaths.

“Increased and sustained funding for evidence-based tobacco prevention and cessation programs is needed now more than ever as part of a comprehensive approach to reducing tobacco use and, ultimately, the cancer burden for everyone in the U.S.,” she said in a news release.

Lacasse specifically pointed to the need for access to barrier-free smoking cessation services, higher tobacco taxes and comprehensive smoke-free policies.

More information

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more on tobacco control programs.

SOURCE: American Cancer Society, news release, March 25, 2025

Source: HealthDay