Smoking causes an estimated 160 cases of cancer every day in the UK. This number has increased by 17 per cent since 2003, meaning over 20 additional people a day are being diagnosed with cancer caused by smoking compared to in 2003.
Although smoking rates in the UK are going down, a growing population means there are still around 6.4m smokers in the UK and around 57,600 diagnoses of cancers caused by smoking each year.
Cancer Research UK has called on the government to re-introduce the ‘Tobacco and Vapes Bill’ in the King’s Speech on July 17, 2024.
Ian Walker, Cancer Research UK’s executive director of policy, said, "Right now, six people are diagnosed every hour in the UK with cancer that was caused by smoking. Every hour, six families’ lives are changed forever by an illness that could have been prevented.
“Smoking is a uniquely toxic consumer product and has no place in our future. Raising the age of sale of tobacco products will be one of the biggest public health interventions in living memory, establishing the UK as a world leader. It’s vital that this bill is re-introduced at the King’s Speech, passed and implemented in full so the impact of smoking is consigned to the history books.”
Cancers linked to smoking
This is the first time Cancer Research UK has included breast cancer as a cancer type caused by smoking in this kind of analysis. The scientific research for this link has been growing for years, and the charity is now confident in the evidence showing that smoking causes around 2,200 cases of breast cancer every year in the UK.
This means that tobacco causes 16 different types of cancer.
The biggest increases are seen in the throat, liver, and kidney, where UK cancer cases caused by smoking have doubled over the last 20 years.
However, lung cancer still has the strongest link to smoking, causing 33,000 cases each year.
Smoking damages your health at a cellular level
Tobacco is a uniquely harmful product. When used as advised by the manufacturer, it will kill up to two-thirds of users.
Cigarette smoke contains over 5,000 chemicals, at least 70 of which cause cancer. These chemicals damage the DNA in our cells and make it harder for cells to repair DNA damage, which can lead to cancer.
One person is admitted to hospital every minute in England because of smoking, and it’s estimated by Action on Smoking and Health that the treatment of smoking-related illness costs the NHS approximately £1.9bn every year in England alone.
Karis Betts, cancer epidemiologist at Cancer Research UK, said, “Smoking remains the biggest cause of cancer in the UK and is responsible for 16 types of the disease, including some of the most common cancer types, like lung, breast and bowel.
“It’s vital that the UK Government continues to sustainably fund smoking cessation services to give those who want to quit the support they need to succeed. Stopping smoking is the best thing you can do for your health, but it’s not always easy, and it can take a few attempts to find the method that works for you. But keep trying, and get support from your free local stop smoking service, doctor or pharmacist.”