On Tuesday, Nov. 30, the Duke Cancer Institute Community Outreach, Engagement and Equity (COEE) program — formerly known as the DCI Office Health Equity (OHE) — will co-host the next in a series of "Conversations with Our Community" with the Durham County Department of Public Health and the Department's Men's Health Council.
Participants at this virtual event (a webinar) — "Clearing the Smoke: Helping You or Your Loved Ones Kick Tobacco, One Day at a Time" — will learn about keeping the lungs healthy through tobacco cessation. Cigarette and cigar smoking, vaping and using other tobacco products will be covered. Participants will also learn how to support their loved ones that use tobacco products.
According to the American Cancer Society, lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death and cigarette smoking is the leading cause of lung cancer. Last year, North Carolina ranked 9th in the nation for estimated lung cancer deaths.
Research about the long-term and short-term effects of vaping on the lungs is still early-stage and there's no known connection with lung cancer. The Centers for Disease Control, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, state and local health departments, and other clinical and public health partners continue to monitor e-cigarette (or vaping) product use-associated lung injury (EVALI). According to the CDC, "National and state data from patient reports and product sample testing show tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)-containing e-cigarette (or vaping) products are linked to most EVALI cases...Vitamin E acetate is also strongly linked to EVALI ... and evidence is not sufficient to rule out the contribution of other chemicals of concern."
