Scientists Say, Cigarettes Cause Cancer
Wow! Alert the press on this one. Apparently scientists have determined that the hydrogen peroxide in cigarette smoke is what promotes cancerous cells. Robert Preidt of HealthDay News reports:
Researchers from the University of California, Davis, said their findings may help lead to new treatments for lung cancer and may help the tobacco industry develop "safer" cigarettes by eliminating such substances in the smoke.Apparently Britney Spears didn’t get the memo—dummy.
"With the five-year survival rate for people with lung cancer at a dismally low 15.5 percent, we hope this study will provide better insight into the identification of new therapeutic targets," senior author Tzipora Goldkorn said in a prepared statement.
In this laboratory study, the researchers exposed different sets of human lung cells to cigarette smoke or hydrogen peroxide and then incubated the cells for one to two days. The cells were then compared to unexposed airway cells. The cells exposed to cigarette smoke and those exposed to hydrogen peroxide showed the same molecular signatures of cancer development. The unexposed cells showed no such changes.
Great. Now they can smoke twice as many cigarettes without increasing the risk for cancer, right? :)