What effect does smoking have on chronic myeloid leukemia patients?

This study aimed to investigate the impact of smoking on survival and progression of disease in patients with chronic myeloid leukemia.

This study concluded that smoking has a negative impact on survival and progression of disease in patients with chronic myeloid leukemia. 

Chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML) occurs when too many white blood cells called granulocytes are produced. These cells build up in the blood, leaving less room for healthy blood cells. This can lead to a weakened immune system and ability to fight infection.

Smoking is a risk factor for CML. A risk factor is something that increases the chances of developing a disease. Smoking is also thought to be a prognostic factor for CML. A prognostic factor is something that can be used to estimate the chance of recovery from disease or the chance of the disease recurring.

It was not known if smoking was a unfavorable prognostic factor for CML patients. 

Data obtained from a previous study was analyzed. 1536 patients with CML took part in the previous study. Of these patients with CML, 20% were smokers and 80% were non-smokers.

The probability of overall survival after 8 years for CML patients who were smokers was 83%. This was compared to 87% for CML patients who non-smokers.

Patients with CML who were smokers were 2.08 times more likely to die compared to non-smokers.

Patients with CML who were smokers were 2.11 times more likely to have disease progression compared to non-smokers.

12% of patients who were smokers had disease progression to advanced phase after 8 years compared to 7% of non-smokers.

The disadvantage of smoking for CML patients was lost as age increased.

This study concluded that smoking has a negative effect on overall survival, death rate and disease progression in CML patients. The authors suggested that all CML patients, especially younger patients, should be encouraged to stop smoking.

One limitation to this study is that smoking status was only recorded at the beginning of the trial. People may have stopped or started smoking during the study. 

Consult your physician about the benefits of quitting smoking for CML.