Active and Passive Smoking and Risk of Death from Pancreatic Cancer: Findings from the Japan Collaborative Cohort Study 

Lin Y, Yagyu K, Ueda J, Kurosawa M, Tamakoshi A, Kikuchi S

BACKGROUND There is uncertainty in the risk of pancreatic cancer with particular aspects of smoking, such as a dose-response relationship and cumulative amount, in Japanese men and women. Very few studies have addressed the role of passive smoking in pancreatic cancer among Japanese women.

METHODS We examined the association between active or passive smoking and the risk of death from pancreatic cancer using data from the Japan Collaborative Cohort Study. The cohort participants (46,395 men and 64,190 women) were followedup for mortality from baseline (1988-1990) through December 31, 2009. Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to estimate relative risks (RR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI).

RESULTS During follow-up, we recorded 611 pancreatic cancer deaths. After adjustment for potential confounding factors, current smokers had a significantly increased risk of death from pancreatic cancer compared with non-smokers, with an RR of 1.70 (95% CI: 1.33-2.19). The risk of death from pancreatic cancer significantly increased with increasing numbers of cigarettes smoked per day. Exposure to environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) in public spaces was not associated with risk of death from pancreatic cancer. The RR for women who reported ETS exposure was 1.20 (95% CI: 0.87-1.67). Women exposed to ETS during childhood or adolescence had 1.21-fold increased risk, but the association was statistically insignificant.

CONCLUSIONS Cigarette smoking is associated with an approximately 70% increase in the risk of death from pancreatic cancer. Further studies with improved exposure assessment are needed to better quantify the association between passive smoking and pancreatic cancer.