Air Pollution Linked to Lung Cancer: East Asia Faces the Largest Burden

A new investigation from the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) shows concerning information on how air pollution affects the development of adenocarcinoma lung cancer. The highest number of toxic air-related disease cases appears in East Asian regions where China reports 6.15 cases per 100,000 male population and 4.25 cases per 100,000 female population in 2022.

The UK’s rates of adenocarcinoma caused by air pollution are notably higher than the US and Canada but far lower than China. The UK reported rates of 0.66 in men and 0.7 in women, four times higher than Finland’s 0.16 and 0.12.

Lucy Clark from Cancer Research UK declared that tobacco usage remains the primary trigger of lung cancer in the UK yet air pollution leads to hundreds of thousands of annual lung cancer occurrences worldwide with East Asia experiencing the greatest impact.

The lack of decisive action by the UK government towards air pollution issues receives criticism from Sarah Sleet of Asthma + Lung UK who highlights the expanding air pollution risks from Heathrow runway developments.

Public health protection demands that UK government authorities set tougher air pollution requirements and execute prompt protective measures. Critics claim that despite government air quality improvement promises there remains an unmet requirement to stop additional harm from happening.

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