Scientists find out why some lifelong smokers never get cancer

Scientists have gained a better understanding of lifelong smokers and their relationship to lung cancer. While the greatest risk of lung cancer is regular smoking, the majority of smokers do not develop lung cancer. It turns out that people’s genes play an important role, particularly the cells that line their lungs.

Researchers discovered this benefit in the lungs of regular smokers and found cells that were less likely to mutate over time.

A small study published in Nature and conducted by researchers at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine made this discovery. Researchers have long speculated that smoking mutates people’s DNA, which was proven in this study, which examined the lungs of 14 non-smokers and 19 light, moderate, and heavy smokers and compared and contrasted their results.

Photo by a Dooley via Unsplash

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Her findings on heavy smokers suggest that some people’s DNA is more likely to repair itself over time, protecting them from cancer that could develop when their lungs are exposed to harmful substances in smoke.

“Our data suggest that despite their heavy smoking, these individuals may have survived for so long because they managed to suppress further accumulation of mutations. This leveling of mutations could be because these people have very competent systems for repairing DNA damage or detoxifying cigarette smoke,” said pulmonologist Simon Spivack of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine.

This finding could explain why 80% to 90% of lifelong smokers never develop lung cancer. Other factors such as diet, physical activity and lifestyle could affect the likelihood of developing cancer, including lung cancer.

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Aside from a better understanding of the disease, the results of the study could lead to better disease prevention and help physicists detect the disease earlier, which is crucial for the prognosis of the disease.

“This could prove to be an important step toward prevention and early detection of lung cancer risk, and away from the current Herculean effort required to tackle late-stage disease, where the bulk of health care spending and misery occurs,” Spivack said.