U.S. Women Understate Lung Cancer Risk

Few American women realize that lung cancer is more likely to kill them than any other type of cancer, a new survey shows. Asked to pick the top killer of women from a list of cancers, 51% picked breast cancer. Only 22% picked lung cancer. The American Lung Association (ALA) did the survey. It included 1,000 women. About half of them said they were not concerned about lung cancer because they didn’t smoke. Among lifelong nonsmokers, two-thirds were not concerned. But about 10% of lung cancer cases occur among those who have never smoked. And 20% of women who die of lung cancer are nonsmokers. Other causes of lung cancer include long-term exposure to radon, asbestos or secondhand smoke. If just the lung cancers not related to smoking were counted separately, they would still rank among the top 10 U.S. cancers, an ALA official told HealthDay News.