We often regard smoking as the main factor which causes Lung Cancer. But even if you are not a smoker and even if you are not exposed to secondhand smoking, you are still most likely to suffer from Lung Cancer due to unbearable air pollution.

According to a recent study done by researchers in New York, they say that people who have never smoked, but live in areas with higher pollution levels, are roughly 20 percent more likely to die from lung cancer than those people who live in an area with cleaner and fresher air. Even though smoking is the number one or is believed to be the primary cause of lung cancer, it is said that about one in 10 people who develop lung cancer have never smoked. Thus, if you are a nonsmoker, you can never really be sure that you can be already spared from this deadly disease.

According to Michelle Turner, the lead author of the study, she said that, “Lung Cancer in “never smokers” is an important cancer. It’s the sixth leading cause of cancer in United States.” The previous estimates of how many non-smokers get lung cancer reveal the data which range from 14 to 21 out of every 100,000 women and five to 14 out of every 100,000 men. That is already alarming.

You might be asking, how can air pollution cause cancer? It’s simple! The fine articles in air pollution, which can irritate lungs and cause inflammation, are thought to be risk factor for lung cancer. The fine particles in air pollution can injure lung through inflammation and damage to DNA. That was according to Turner’s team as they wrote it in its report which was published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

In this study, Turner and the rest of the team followed more than 180,000 non-smoker participants for 26 years. In the entire study period, 1,100 people died because of lung cancer. The participants lived in all 50 states and in Puerto Rico, the researchers estimated how much air pollution they were exposed to. The particles were measured in units of micrograms of particles per cubic meter of air. After the team took into account other risk factors such as second-hand smoke and radon exposure, they found out that for every 10 extra units of air pollution exposure, a person’s risk of lung cancer rose by 15 to 27 percent.

Thus, all the people who are most likely to be exposed in air pollution are cautioned and are advised to take precautionary measures so as to avoid exposure from pollutants.