The effects of smoking are catching up with women, according to a report released Wednesday by the American Cancer Society, which found that lung cancer has surpassed breast cancer as the leading cause of cancer death among women in developed countries.
A rise in smoking among women three decades ago is thought to be the cause,
The Associated Press reported.
There were about 14 million new cancer cases and 8 million cancer deaths worldwide in 2012, the AP said.
Early breast cancer detection also contributed to
lung cancer deaths overtaking those of breast cancer, Time reported.
In 2012, 209,000 women in developed countries died of lung cancer while 197,000 died of breast cancer, Time said.
“We know now that in a lot of developed countries among women, smoking is on the decline,” lead report author Lindsey Torre said, according to Time. “The good news is that we can probably expect to see these lung cancer mortality rates peak and start to decline as times go by.”
The study, published in CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians, is based on data on cancer cases from 184 countries. In the United States, lung cancer has been the
leading cancer killer for men and women since the late 1980s, CBS News reported.
While smoking is the leading cause of lung cancer in the U.S., according to the report, other factors include indoor air pollution from unventilated coal-fueled stoves and cooking fumes and exposure to carcinogens such as asbestos, arsenic, radon, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, CBS News said.
Lung cancer deaths for women in Europe are expected to rise by 9 percent between 2009 and 2015, while
death rates from breast cancer are expected to fall by 10.2 percent, The Guardian reported.
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