National Cancer Database analysis of smoking status of the US cancer population

A history of smoking is an important consideration in the management of cancer. The National Cancer Database (NCDB) began collecting smoking status in 2023. Among the data on 1,596,789 patients diagnosed with cancer in 2023 collected by the NCDB, smoking status was ascertained for 96.8%. Overall, 47.3% of the patients had a smoking history, including 14.7% who were currently smoking at the time of their diagnosis. The percentage of patients with a smoking history varied by cancer type, with the highest percentage among those with lung cancer (84.5%) and the lowest among those with thyroid cancer (29.8%). Overall, 70.5% of Asian patients with cancer never smoked, while only 42.6% of American Indian or Alaskan Native patients never smoked. Current smoking status rateds at time of cancer diagnosis varied by sex, age, and race. Current smoking status also varied by socioeconomic characteristics, such as median household income, with 22.1% of patients in thehousehold income lowest quartile versus 9.7% in the highest quartile being current smokers. The authors conclude that smoking status was successfully added to the NCDB for over 96% of patients diagnosed with cancer in 2023.