Protective cells could cut risk of lung cancer for ex-smokers

Protective cells in the lungs of ex-smokers could explain why quitting smoking reduces the risk of developing lung cancer, finds new research co-led by UCL and the Wellcome Sanger Institute. The study, funded by Cancer Research UK, discovered that people who had stopped smoking had more genetically healthy lung cells, which have a much lower risk of developing into cancer. Published in Nature, the research  found that quitting smoking could do much more than just stopping further damage to the lungs. Researchers believe it also allows new, healthy cells to actively replenish the lining of our airways. This shift in proportion of healthy to damaged cells could help protect against cancer. These results highlight the benefits of stopping smoking completely, at any age. First author, Dr Kate Gowers, (Lungs for Living Research Centre at UCL), said: "Our study is the first time that scientists have looked in detail at the genetic effects of smoking on individual healthy lung cells.