University of Leeds study finds smokers ‘less likely to survive’ skin cancer

People with an aggressive form of skin cancer could be 40 per cent less likely to survive if they have a history of smoking, new research suggests.
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A study by the University of Leeds, funded by Cancer Research UK, found evidence that smoking is a blight on the body’s immune response to melanoma.

Researchers studied more than 700 melanoma patients and found that smokers were significantly less likely to survive the illness than those who had never smoked within a decade after their diagnosis.

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Some patients were four and a half times less likely to survive if they had been smokers, the research found.

Julia Newton-Bishop, professor of dermatology at the University of LeedsJulia Newton-Bishop, professor of dermatology at the University of Leeds
Julia Newton-Bishop, professor of dermatology at the University of Leeds

Lead author Julia Newton-Bishop, professor of dermatology at the University of Leeds, said: “Based on these findings, stopping smoking should be strongly recommended for people diagnosed with melanoma.”

While the study found a strong association between smoking and survival, it could not determine for sure if smoking was the direct cause.

But the researchers said they believe that smoking may have had an impact on patients’ immune system, reducing their ability to fight their skin cancer, as well as increasing their risk of other smoking-related health issues.

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Prof Newton-Bishop said: “The immune system is like an orchestra, with multiple pieces.

“This research suggests that smoking might disrupt how it works together in tune, allowing the musicians to continue playing but possibly in a more disorganised way.

“The result is that smokers could still mount an immune response to try and destroy the melanoma, but it appears to have been less effective than in never-smokers, and smokers were less likely to survive their cancer.”