Increase in the number of women with lung cancer in recent years - study
In 2017, some 1,842 people died from lung cancer. Among them, a third were women.
By JERUSALEM POST STAFFCancer illustrative(photo credit: PIXABAY)
A rise in the number of women suffering from lung cancer is estimated to be linked to the rising number of women smokers, according to data released by the Israeli Cancer Association. There has been an increase in the total number of those sick in recent years, though it has been noted that the proportion of women among them has risen.The study has shown that in 2017, some 2,613 people were diagnosed with lung cancer, 37.3% of whom were women. In 2007, it was 35.3% women, and in 1997, 29.2%.The rate of those sick is examined by groups of age, gender and population. By these metrics, the highest risk from lung cancer is in people over 70, and with men more at risk than women. The study also notes that Arab men are more at risk than Jewish men, likely due to the high rate of smokers among them.In Jewish and other women there has been a visible rise in the number of those suffering from lung cancer. Arab women saw no change.In 2017, some 1,842 people died from lung cancer. Among them, 33.2% were women. This is in comparison to 2007, when 1,551 people died from lung cancer, with 32.6% being women, and 1997 which saw 1,163 deaths with 29.9% being women.While the relative number of survivors has gone up, lung cancer remains a deadly disease even among younger patients. The survival rate among Jews and Arab is similar, and women in general have a slightly higher chance to survive than men."Smoking cigarettes remains the most crucial and significant risk in the development of lung cancer. Smoking is responsible for about 80% of death relating to lung cancer," according to Moshe Bar-Haim, head of the Israel Cancer Association."Recent years have seen the rise of electronic cigarettes which are even more addictive than normal, as well as other forms of smoking from a young age. We have to remember that cancer is more likely to develop among those who started smoking when they were young, and that quitting leads to a reduced risk of getting sick," he said.A new pilot program has also been developed to allow for the early discovery of lung cancer in people at high risk but who exhibit no symptoms, but due to the coronavirus pandemic it has been forced to delay its operations.
