Lung cancer risk in females versus males in a large married couples cohort study

Analysis of the Shanghai Couples Cohort investigated the risk of lung cancer in males versus females in 26,339 married heterosexual couples. The prevalence of ever smoking was 2.1% in wives and 65.4% in husbands. Over a median follow-up of 12.5 years, incident lung cancer was documented in 293 wives and and 500 husbands. The truncated (40-89) age-standardized incidence rate per 100,000 person-years in all couples was significantly lower in wives (56.1) than in their husbands (117.4). with an incidence rate ratio (IRR) of 0.48 for wives versus husbands. A similar pattern was found among dual-smoker couples. Among dual-nonsmoker couples, the corresponding age-standardized rate was significantly higher in wives (52.6%) than their husbands (33.4), with an IRR of 1.57. Multivariable adjustment did no alter the result, with an HR for wives versus husbands of 1.54 (95% CI 1.05-2.27). The authofs conclude that this study suggests that females are more susceptible to lungcancer among never smokers than males (visual abstract).