Snuffed out

Vegetarian Times, Sept, 2004

Lung cancer has now surpassed breast cancer as the leading cause of cancer death among women in the United States--at the same time that lung cancer death among men is declining. This year, Northwestern University researchers report, lung cancer will account for one-fourth of female cancer deaths, causing as many deaths in women as breast cancer and all gynecologic cancers combined.

Lung cancer in women presents unique challenges, the study, published in the April 14, 2004 issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association, finds. Women's chemistry reacts differently to lung cancer, which can require different treatments. "Mounting evidence suggests that these differences could be due, in part, to estrogen," says lead researcher Jyoti D. Patel, MD. The differences maybe traced to the effect of estrogen; its impact on lung cancer has not been sufficiently studied.