Cancer Survivors and Smoking

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In 2021, 11.4% of cancer survivors aged 18 and older currently smoked cigarettes.

Summary graph for Cancer Survivors and Smoking, Click to see detailed view of graph

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Background

As illustrated in the present section, many cancer survivors continue to smoke after their cancer diagnosis. This increases their risk for chronic health conditions, second primary cancers related to smoking, and premature death. To enhance the length and health-related quality of their lives, efforts are needed to identify these individuals and provide them with evidence-based interventions to help them quit smoking and remain tobacco free.

As the population of cancer survivors increases and their expected time of survival lengthens, the health behaviors of these individuals are becoming an important focus of attention. Behavioral risk factors, such as smoking, affect the length and quality of life after diagnosis. Tracking these behaviors permits evaluation of how well cancer control efforts are working to reduce preventable disability and death among those with a history of cancer.

Measure

Rates of smoking among cancer survivors are based on the self-reporting of individuals with a cancer history who are interviewed as part of the annual population-based National Health Interview Survey (NHIS). Participants who had smoked at least 100 cigarettes in their lifetime and who, at the time of the interview, reported smoking every day or some days were considered to be currently smoking.

Healthy People 2030 Target

  • There is no Healthy People 2030 target for smoking rates among cancer survivors, though Healthy People does include a national objective to increase the mental and physical health-related quality of life of cancer survivors; however, the goal for the general population is to decrease to 5 percent the proportion of people who currently smoke cigarettes.
  • Healthy People 2030 Targets are developed and based on the general population and do not account for differences in the age distribution of cancer survivors compared to the general population. Cancer survivors are typically older than those in the general population who have not had cancer.

Healthy People 2030 is a set of goals set forth by the Department of Health and Human Services.
Note: Goals are indicated as blue line on Detailed Trend Graphs.

Data Source

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. National Health Interview Survey, 1992–2021.

In 2019 the NHIS questionnaire was redesigned to increase relevance, enhance data quality, and minimize respondent burden. In addition, the COVID-19 pandemic created challenges conducting in-person interviews for the 2020 NHIS, requiring changes to field procedures to conduct most surveys by telephone, which impacted survey response rates. For details related to the potential impacts of these issues, please refer to Potential Impact of NHIS Redesign and COVID-19 on the Cancer Trends Progress Report.

Trends and Most Recent EstimatesHelp with navigating the graphs and data tables

By Sex

Percentage of cancer survivors aged 18 years and older who reported current cigarette use by sex, 1992-2021
Overview Graph Detailed Trend Graphs Most Recent Estimates (2021)
Percent of cancer survivors 95% Confidence Interval
Thumbnail of graph for Percentage of cancer survivors aged 18 years and older who reported current cigarette use by sex, 1992-2021 Both SexesClick to see the detailed trend graph for Both Sexes 11.4 10.1 - 12.9
MaleClick to see the detailed trend graph for Male 11.5 9.5 - 13.9
FemaleClick to see the detailed trend graph for Female 11.0 9.4 - 12.8

By Age

Percentage of cancer survivors aged 18 years and older who reported current cigarette use by age, 1992-2021
Overview Graph Detailed Trend Graphs Most Recent Estimates (2021)
Percent of cancer survivors 95% Confidence Interval
Thumbnail of graph for Percentage of cancer survivors aged 18 years and older who reported current cigarette use by age, 1992-2021 Ages 18-44Click to see the detailed trend graph for Ages 18-44 15.0 10.1 - 21.8
Ages 45-64Click to see the detailed trend graph for Ages 45-64 17.9 15.1 - 21.3
Ages 65 and olderClick to see the detailed trend graph for Ages 65 and older 7.0 5.9 - 8.3

By Time Since Cancer Diagnosis

Percentage of cancer survivors aged 18 years and older who reported current cigarette use by time since cancer diagnosis, 1992-2021
Overview Graph Detailed Trend Graphs Most Recent Estimates (2021)
Percent of cancer survivors 95% Confidence Interval
Thumbnail of graph for Percentage of cancer survivors aged 18 years and older who reported current cigarette use by time since cancer diagnosis, 1992-2021 5 years or less since diagnosisClick to see the detailed trend graph for 5 years or less since diagnosis 10.8 8.8 - 13.1
6+ years since diagnosisClick to see the detailed trend graph for 6+ years since diagnosis 12.1 10.4 - 14.1

Compared to Remaining U.S. Population

Comparison of cancer survivors and remaining U.S. population for percentage of adults aged 18 years and older who currently smoked cigarettes by age, 2017-2021
Overview graph Age Group Cancer Survivor Remaining U.S. Population
Percent of population Confidence Interval Percent of population Confidence Interval
Thumbnail of graph for Comparison of cancer survivors and remaining U.S. population for percentage of adults aged 18 years and older who currently smoked cigarettes by age,  2017-2021 Ages 18-44 18.3 15.1 - 22.1 13.3 12.8 - 13.8
Ages 45-64 17.9 16.4 - 19.5 15.7 15.1 - 16.3
Ages 65 and older 7.4 6.7 - 8.1 8.7 8.3 - 9.1

Additional Information on Cancer Survivors and Smoking

Year Range

1992-2021

Recent Summary Trend Year Range

2017-2021

Summary Tables

Survival, Smoking, Obesity, Physical Activity

Recent Summary Trend

Falling

Desired Direction

Falling