Viewpoint: Not all studies have linked nonsmokers’ lung cancers to secondhand smoke

By Albert R. Faunce

Anderson resident



It is easy to blame secondhand smoke for just about everything when the answers are not known. After all, we know direct smoking is linked to lung cancer; therefore secondhand smoke is the next logical choice that the general public will readily recognize and believe.

Dr. Nassar Hanna spoke to our state legislators about the risks of secondhand smoke.

However, he never mentioned his uncertainty as expressed in a Medscape interview.

This is the essence of Dr. Hanna’s uncertainty.

He also lists the following as possible causes of lung cancer in never smokers: might have a viral origin, the human papilloma virus 16 and 18 subtypes, exposure to cooking fumes, pre-existing lung disease such as an old scar from tuberculosis, working in industries with chronic exposure to heavy metals, such as welders, radon is a known cause of lung cancer which has been suggested as the No. 1 cause of lung cancer in the never smoker, there may also be an apparent inherited genetic susceptibility to getting lung cancer, and lastly, there is some suggestion that hormonal factors may be involved in the pathogenesis of lung cancer.

There is a reason why the American Council on Science and Health states: “Any claim that exposure to exhaled or sidestream smoke poses a threat to life is ‘indisputable’ false. There are studies and scientists who dispute it strongly. These statements, among many others, are based on the results of studies that found no long-term health risks, and even on studies that claim to find risks, because the science is so weak."

Since the 1980s, a small but steady trickle of research involving smokers and never smokers has implicated the human papilloma viruses as a cause of lung cancer.

HPV DNA was detected in over 21.7 percent of non-small cell lung cancers.

Since it was not established that HPV causes 100 percent of cervical cancers until 1999, the prevalence of HPV is probably underestimated in these early studies.

After reviewing the data in 53 publications, a German study reports the data suggests that HPV is the second most important cause of lung cancer after cigarette smoking and strongly argues the need for additional research on this issue.

This is just now beginning to be reported, in spite of the fact that some nonsmoking advocates are trying to repress this reporting. Will there be more research to point away from secondhand smoke?

Remember, the secondhand smoke campaign that has been waged by nonsmoking advocates has brought in billions of dollars in revenues, grants and donations and been responsible for smoking bans based on secondhand smoking claims.

Are any of these organizations and legislative bodies ready to lose their credibility and paychecks?

Remember the silicone gel breast implant cancer fraud of the 1990s?

Do you remember anyone, including doctors claiming to be expert witnesses, or attorneys apologizing?

Do you think the attorneys paid huge sums of money or the plaintiff’s awarded huge sums of money by duped and unsuspecting juries gave it back?

How about the wrongfully accused companies that had to file bankruptcy?

Are we so blinded that we are unwilling to accept a new truth or at least search for it?

For more information, do a computer search using the following: HPV Lung Cancer, Nassar Hanna and Dr. Michael Siegel.

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