Perceptions of Continued Smoking and Smoking Cessation Among Patients With Cancer

Purpose: Continued smoking after a cancer diagnosis leads to poorer treatment outcomes, survival, and quality of life. We evaluated the perceptions of the effects of continued smoking on quality of life, survival, and fatigue among patients with cancer after a cancer diagnosis and the effects of these perceptions on smoking cessation.

Patients And Methods: Patients with cancer from all disease subsites from Princess Margaret Cancer Centre (Toronto, Ontario) were surveyed between April 2014 and May 2016 for sociodemographic variables, smoking history, and perceptions of continued smoking on quality of life, survival, and fatigue. Multivariable regression models evaluated the association between patients' perceptions and smoking cessation and the factors influencing patients' perceptions of smoking.

Results: Among 1,121 patients, 277 (23%) were smoking cigarettes up to 1 year before diagnosis, and 54% subsequently quit; 23% had lung cancer, and 27% had head and neck cancers. The majority felt that continued smoking after a cancer diagnosis negatively affected quality of life (83%), survival (86%), and fatigue (82%). Current smokers during the peridiagnosis period were less likely to perceive that continued smoking was harmful when compared with ex-smokers and never-smokers ( P < .01). Among current smokers, perceiving that smoking negatively affected quality of life (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 2.68 [95% CI, 1.26 to 5.72]; P = .011), survival (aOR, 5.00 [95% CI, 2.19 to 11.43]; P < .001), and fatigue (aOR, 3.57 [95% CI, 1.69 to 7.54]; P < .001) were each strongly associated with smoking cessation. Among all patients, those with a greater smoking history were less likely to believe that smoking was harmful in terms of quality of life (aOR, 0.98 [95% CI, 0.98 to 0.99]; P < .001), survival (aOR, 0.98 [95% CI, 0.98 to 0.99]; P < .001), and fatigue (aOR, 0.99 [95% CI, 0.98 to 0.99]; P < .001).

Conclusion: The perceptions of continued smoking after a cancer diagnosis among patients with cancer are strongly associated with smoking cessation. Counseling about the harms of continued smoking in patients with cancer, and in particular among those who have lower risk perceptions, should be considered when developing a smoking cessation program.