Smoking status among cancer patients by specialty: A U.S. nationwide representative analysis

• Published in: Cancer medicine (Malden, MA) MA), 2023-12, Vol.12 (23), p.21389-21399
• Main Authors: Nolazco, José Ignacio, Tang, Yuzhe, Alkhatib, Khalid Y., King, Andrew J., Mossanen, Matthew, Chang, Steven Lee
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: cancer survivors; physicians; smoking cessation; tobacco
• ISSN: 2045-7634; 2045-7634
• DOI: 10.1002/cam4.6684

Background Persistence in tobacco use among cancer survivors has been associated with a multitude of clinicodemographic factors. However, there is a paucity of understanding regarding the role the healthcare professional's specialty plays in tobacco cessation in tobacco‐related cancer survivors. Methods We conducted a cross‐sectional analysis of data from cancer survivors with a smoking history using the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) database to examine differences in the proportion of patients continuing tobacco use among patients with a diagnosis of cancer segregated by cancer site specialty over the 2016–2020 period. We accounted for complex survey design and used sampling weights to obtain a nationwide representative sample. We employed modified Poisson regression adjusting for age, gender, education, income, race, marital status, and medical specialty. Results We analyzed 19,855 cancer survivors with a current or past history of tobacco use, of whom 5222 (26,3%) self‐reported to be current smokers. Patients with urological and gynecological tobacco‐related malignancies had a higher relative risk (RR) of being current smokers with a RR of 1.30 (95% confidence interval, 1.12–1.51) and 1.25 (95% confidence interval, 1.12–1.39) respectively. Malignant Hematology had the lowest RR of smoking status among all other specialties RR 0.85 (95% confidence interval, 0.59–1.21). Conclusions Continuing smoking rates among tobacco‐related cancer survivors were different between specialties. One in four cancer survivors were current smokers; this emphasizes health professionals' paramount role in tobacco cessation counseling. This study analyzed data from cancer survivors with a smoking history using the BRFSS database to examine differences in the proportion of patients continuing tobacco use among patients with a diagnosis of cancer segregated by cancer site specialty over the 2016–2020 period. Results showed that patients with urological and gynecological tobacco‐related malignancies had a higher relative risk of being current smokers, while malignant hematology had the lowest relative risk. The study concludes that continuing smoking rates among tobacco‐related cancer survivors differ between specialties and highlights the importance of health professionals in tobacco cessation counseling.