Washington, August 26 : Smokers who enjoy a cigarette soon after they wake up in the morning are more likely to develop lung and head and neck cancers than those who light up later in the day, a new study
has shown.

Joshua Muscat, PhD, of the Penn State College of Medicine in Hershey, and his colleagues investigated whether nicotine dependence as characterized by the time to first cigarette after waking affects smokers'' risk
of lung and head and neck cancers independent of cigarette smoking frequency and duration.

The lung cancer analysis included 4,775 lung cancer cases and 2,835 controls, all of whom were regular cigarette smokers. Compared with individuals who smoked more than 60 minutes after waking, individuals
who smoked 31 to 60 minutes after waking were 1.31 times as likely to develop lung cancer, and those who smoked within 30 minutes were 1.79 times as likely to develop lung cancer.

The head and neck cancer analysis included 1,055 head and neck cancer cases and 795 controls, all with a history of cigarette smoking. Compared with individuals who smoked more than 60 minutes after waking,
individuals who smoked 31 to 60 minutes after waking were 1.42 times as likely to develop head and neck cancer, and those who smoked within 30 minutes were 1.59 times as likely to develop head and neck
cancer.

"These smokers have higher levels of nicotine and possibly other tobacco toxins in their body, and they may be more addicted than smokers who refrain from smoking for a half hour or more," said Dr. Muscat.

The study has been published online in Cancer, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society. (ANI)