Cigarette smokers may have a high propensity to develop and die from renal cancer.
This study evaluated the correlation between cigarette smoking and the probability of dying from renal cancer. Scientists from the National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, USA, compared smoking status with kidney cancer mortality rates in a study population comprising of 250,000 US veterans.
The research team found a high rate of deaths from renal cancer among cigarette smokers, with kidney cancer mortality risk rising as high as 47 per cent in active smokers. The investigators concluded that "almost one-fifth of all renal cancer deaths are attributable to cigarette smoking."