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Cigarette Smoking

Cigarette Smoking Overview

Cigarette smoking remains the leading cause of death and illness among Americans. Every year, roughly 430,000 Americans die from illnesses caused by tobacco use, accounting for one fifth of all deaths. Tobacco use costs the nation about $100 billion each year in direct medical expense and lost productivity.

About 25% of all American adults (46.3 million people) smoke. This number has remained constant for several years despite government efforts through Healthy People 2000 and Healthy People 2010 to lower those percentages. Slightly more men (28.1%) smoke than women (23.5%). Hispanics (20.4%) smoke less than whites (25.3%) or African Americans (26.7%).

Nevertheless, significant progress has been made since 1964, when the Surgeon General issued the first report outlining the health dangers of smoking. Since that time, the prevalence of smoking has dropped from 42.4% among adults to 25%.

Both lung cancer and emphysema would become quite rare if people would stop smoking. Compared to a nonsmoker, a smoker faces these risks:

  • 14 times greater risk of dying from cancer of the lung, throat, or mouth


  • 4 times greater risk of dying from cancer of the esophagus


  • 2 times greater risk of dying from a heart attack


  • 2 times greater risk of dying from cancer of the bladder
Use of other tobacco products such as pipes, cigars, and snuff is less common, comprising less than 10% of use of all tobacco products; however, the health effects of these products are similar to those of tobacco—particularly their association with cancers of the mouth, throat, and esophagus.

Increasing attention has been devoted to publicizing the dangers of second-hand (environmental) smoke, the association between tobacco marketing and initiation of smoking among youth, and the development of strategies and medications to help smokers quit. Cigarette smoking has been linked strongly to the following illnesses:

  • Other diseases of blood vessels (such as poor circulation in the legs)



Next: Cigarette Smoking Symptoms »

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Smoking (Cigarette)

Cancer of the Mouth and Throat Overview

The oral cavity (mouth) and the upper part of the throat (pharynx) have roles in many important functions, including breathing, talking, chewing, and swallowing. The mouth and upper throat are sometimes referred to as the oropharynx. The important structures of the mouth and upper throat include the following:

  • Lips

  • Inside lining of the cheeks (buccal mucosa)

  • Teeth

  • Gums

  • Tongue

  • Floor of the mouth

  • Back of the throat, including the tonsils (oropharynx)

  • Roof of the mouth (the bony front part [hard palate] and the softer rear part [soft palate])

  • Area behind the wisdom teeth

  • Salivary glands

Many different cell types make up these different structures. Cancer occurs when normal cells undergo a transformation whereby they grow and multiply without normal controls....

Read the Cancer of the Mouth and Throat article »



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