NT Reporter
Panaji
The gender profile of
lung cancer cases in Goa has seen a sharp shift. Women now account for a substantially larger proportion of cases than a decade ago and the National Organisation for Tobacco Eradication (NOTE) India has called for a dedicated epidemiological study into the possible causes.
According to data cited by NOTE India, Goa records around 120 to 150 new lung cancer cases annually. About a decade ago, the male-to-female distribution of cases was approximately 90:10. In
recent years, however, the ratio has changed to around 60:40.
“While tobacco smoking remains one of the most important risk factors for lung cancer, the increasing proportion of women among lung cancer patients in Goa warrants a systematic investigation into the reasons behind this change, particularly into cases involving women who have never been active smokers,” said NOTE India president Dr Shekhar Salkar.
He said the investigation should not attribute the trend prematurely to any single factor, but should examine a range of possible exposures, including second-hand tobacco smoke, indoor and outdoor air pollution, occupational and environmental exposure, biomass fuel use and radon.
A study published in The Lancet on the health burden associated with second-hand smoke estimated that India had about 444 million people exposed to second-hand smoke in 2023 and recorded around 3,25,600 deaths attributable to such exposure that year.
NOTE India said a Goa-specific study should examine the incidence of lung cancer among women over the past decade or more, their smoking status, exposure to tobacco smoke at home and workplaces, environmental and occupational factors, as well as the age-wise and geographical distribution of cases.
The clinical and pathological characteristics of lung cancer among women and differences in risk factors between smokers and never-smokers should also be assessed, it said.
He added that tobacco-control measures should also focus on protecting non-smokers from involuntary exposure to tobacco smoke.
