Prostate Cancer Survival Odds Worse for Smokers

New research into prostate cancer is showing that smoking can worsen the long term prognosis of those patients. Even though smoking has long been linked with lung cancer, the new data shows it can affect cancers in other areas of the body as well. The study focused on previous research into nearly twenty-three thousand male prostate cancer patients, reviewing the data from their treatment. Twenty percent of these patients were active smokers; the remaining either having never smoked, or had ceased smoking. That study persisted for a six year period.

When researchers contacted these patients, those who were smoking at that time were found to be forty percent more likely to have seen their prostate tumors reemerge, and twice as likely to have experienced a spread of cancer beyond the prostate gland. Those patients who had died from cancer were nearly ninety percent more likely to have been smokers.

There is good news for smokers, however. The research also showed that having ceased smoking for at least a decade, and not resumed smoking, returned the medical risks to the same as someone who had never smoked at all. In other words, even if you’ve smoked for some time, stopping now is a good long term move that can improve your medical outcomes.

Key Points:

  • 1Prostate cancer patients who are former cigarette smokers were more likely than nonsmokers to have a tumor return.
  • 2Prostate cancer patients who are current cigarette smokers are more than twice as likely to have tumors spread beyond the prostate than nonsmokers.
  • 3Prostate cancer patients who are current smokers are 89 percent more likely than nonsmokers to die from cancer.


During follow-up, compared to men who never smoked, current smokers were 40 percent more likely to have tumors return after treatment and more than twice as likely to have cancer spread beyond the prostate. Smokers were also 89 percent more likely to die from cancer

What is it costing you to smoke?   Click HERE

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Written by HealthStatus
Medical Writer & Editor

HealthStatus has been operating since 1998 providing the best interactive health tools on the Internet, millions of visitors have used our health risk assessment, body fat and calories burned calculators. The HealthStatus editorial team has continued that commitment to excellence by providing our visitors with easy to understand high quality health content for many years.

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