Non-smoking Asian women getting lung cancer at a high rate; new study seeks to determine why

A Bay Area-based study finds that 80% of Asian American women with lung cancer never smoked and researchers are trying to figure out why. Elizabeth Cook reports.

[hmharris]

In 2020, My 79 year old never smoker Vietnamese mom was diagnosed with lung cancer that metastasized to cerebral spinal fluid. She was very strong and healthy. She was a gym rat that went to aerobics class daily, took yoga classes, swam 5 days a week. She was healthier than many 30 year olds and she ran circles around everyone.

The doctor in Kansas City Hospital on the Plaza was very nice but he insisted she must have been a smoker. When I was ADAMANT my mom never smoked, the doctor didn't believe me and said she must have smoked even if I didn't know it because she was from Vietnam. (It was a racist generalization, but the reason I know my mom never smoked is because years prior she picked up an unlit cigarette and pretended to smoke and looked very awkward because she couldn't even figure out how to hold it.) A few days later genetic testing came back that her lung cancer was because of Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR) Exon 19 Deletion. I was told at that time that EGFR Exon 19 Deletion impacts a higher number of Asian women than other ethnic groups.

Lung cancer is the only cancer that people (including hospital staff) look down on the patient, as if the patient deserves or wants lung cancer. Even smokers don't want lung cancer and deserve top-notch care. Let's normalize caring for all lung cancer patients whether they were smokers or not.

[uharignitor]

I know a non-smoking woman who got lung cancer because of bad quality of air. She was a cook.

[dr.woozie]

DO NOT perform high heat cooking in an unventilated kitchen without a fume hood.

[jglee]

15 years ago, I worked with a Taiwanese woman whose mother died from lung cancer. She didn't smoke but her husband did. She said her mom got cancer from second hand smoke. This is in Houston.

[purpleearth]

Scientists in China actually looked into similar issues long ago where patients developed advanced lung cancer but never smoked and found that most of them had been exposed to Radon, a naturally occurring gas released from soils/rocks as well as from incomplete burning of natural gas on the burner on your stove, that is when the flames of your burner appear yellow/orange/red instead of blue. A Radon detector can help determine if the level is too high. As for the cooker, regular cleaning is required and make sure your cooker flame is always blue.

[qtpie]

May everyone who has cancer get well soon.

[robtucker]

This was heartbreaking… I lost my fiancé to lung cancer and she never smoked either… she used to eat so healthy and was always taking the skin off my chicken… she passed away at 27… ❤

[Lliuon]

That's why I quit working in the laboratory. Every day, I was exposed to acids, and I noticed that some colleagues developed cancer and some of their children showed symptoms of autism. Thank you for sharing these kinds of videos

[nippontoy]

This really hits me hard. My wife of 23 years passed away late March with stage 4 lung cancer. She was everything to me and I miss her dearly. My heart goes out to family and loved ones who are going through this horrible event. I hope for a medical advancement to help others.

[XX-bnsf]

She survived stage 4 lung cancer for 5 years? WOW. Good for her. My wife passed away less than 2 months after receiving the same diagnosis.

[fidesedquivide]

I am an Asian American who grew up in China in a very small apartment in which it was often filled with cigarette smoke the whole evening by my father while we the children did homework around a table that was also a dinner table during the eating hours. I personally never smoked, my mom who was an obgyn her whole life also never smoked but got lung cancer in her early 60s. Her cancer was discovered early because of herself was a physician. Her operation was very successful and she went on to live another two decades cancer free.

[SkyDiverTO]

My dad never smoked or drank alcohol and he got lung cancer as well. I miss him every day.

[kitty]

Being Asian American female myself, I think the fact that many of us cook at home and the way we cook foods may have something to do with it. First of all typical Asian cooking style calls for high heat stir frying. Usually it generates a lot of steam and SMOKE. The gas used to fuel the stove also generates carcinogenic compounds. We use hood vent that pulls air out, but not every home has that feature, and not all of them can move air out quickly enough. I think the combination of smoke and gas fire may contribute to the lung cancer. I haven't seen any study on whether cooking habit has anything to do with lung cancer. I hope someone can start this study soon.

[janicep]

I lost my mom (Filipina) to Lung Cancer exactly 10 years ago. She never smoked and drank alcohol. My mom went to ER and diagnosed with Stage IV Lung Cancer. She fought until the end and think what breaks my heart is that she never complained over the four month battle. I feel like I haven't moved on because I don't have answers. 😭

[comfiecozie]

My aunt died from this too. She never smoked, nor did her husband or any of her kids. She was never around smoke. but what she did do a lot was clean. and I have always wondered if it had anything to do with the cleaning products she was constantly exposed to. I wonder if this could be the case for these women too? Asian women tend to also do a lot of cleaning. If its not the gas stoves, then I personally suspect it has something to do cleaning products.

[kaela_music]

My mom passed away at 56, 9 months after we discovered she had stage 4 lungs cancer. She didn't smoke either and tried to live a very healthy life, despite having a fragile health. It's been now 11 years and even if we wish we knew how it all happened, it would be torturous to try to find a reason why. Sometimes life is unfair, but we sure saw a bunch of miracles during these 9 months. I know my mom is somewhere out there now, watching her children and grand children grow and live happily 🌻 A big prayer to all those who are walking the sad path of disease, and their families.

[joeknowme]

Today we buried my mom she lost her battle with cancer. Her pain when the cancer spread on her spine brain and liver was heartbreaking she couldn’t eat or drink she starved to death while in tremendous pain love your parents specially if they’re sick I took that for granted and now it’s too late to tell her I love her

[OneCatShortOfCrazy]

They started doing research on why 25 years ago and this report doesnt mention one single thing the study have found out, or is even theorizing. Either they have found nothing at all in 25 years, not even a working theory, or this report was extremely lacking considering the title.

[Quackk_Addict]

as a 32 year old who has been in remission for 8 months for non hodgkins lymphoma, I can tell you I know what every cancer patient goes through and it sucks cause it really does drain you mentally, the people who you thought were going to be there for you, arent... I just want to pray for everyone who has been affected by cancer and I ask the Lord to rebuke all anxiety, depression and cancer. May he bless you with his gracious healing power

[GraceW-jxll]

Wait my mum passed 10yrs ago from lung cancer and was always against smoking….these stats are eye opening. My mum had actually gone a couple times to doctors before her diagnosis and they had brushed her off…until it was too late. Hope more Asian women become aware of this make sure that are adamant with making sure doctors are actually taking them srsly.