The potential health impact of smog could be far greater than SARS, says one expert.
A type of lung cancer reportedly on the rise in Beijing has been linked to worsening air quality, with one expert warning the potential health impact could be far greater than the SARS epidemic in 2003. .
"The proportion of cases of lung adenocarcinoma is increasing," said Wang Ning, deputy director of the Beijing Bureau for Cancer Prevention and Control, adding that there has been a decline in the proportion of squamous cell lung cancer cases in the capital.
Lung adenocarcinoma is a common histological form of lung cancer that contains certain distinct malignant tissue, while the other type is a form of non-small cell lung cancer.
Medical experts believe that smoking is more likely to cause squamous cell lung cancer, while exposure to air pollution, such as exhaust fumes and passive smoking, is more likely to cause lung adenocarcinoma, Wang said.
Zhong Nanshan, an academic at the Chinese Academy of Engineering and director of the Guangzhou Institute of Respiratory Diseases, said that without timely intervention, pollution could have a potential health impact far greater than that of the SARS epidemic.
Zhong also said that severe pollution could lead to low birth weight and premature births.
He said there have been a growing number of studies on the relationship between air quality and health, citing one linking exposure to air pollution and traffic fumes with low birth weight.
This study found that for every 10 microgram increase in PM2.5 per cubic meter, the incidence of preterm birth increased by 3 to 5 percent, while the average birth weight fell by 8.9 grams.
PM2.5 particles are air pollutants with a diameter of 2.5 micrometers or less, small enough to invade the smallest airways.
Some public health experts have predicted that in five to seven years, China will see a substantial increase in diseases, including lung cancer and cardiovascular conditions, Zhong said.
Wang’s cancer findings were the result of a study she led that was published in the Chinese Journal of Preventive Medicine in March 2011. Wang and her coworkers examined cases of lung cancer diagnosed in Beijing hospitals between 1998 and 2007.
"Of the city’s lung cancer cases that were diagnosed histologically, the proportion of squamous cell lung cancer decreased annually from 30.41 percent in 1998 to 24.16 percent. Meanwhile, the proportion of lung adenocarcinoma increased from 42.83 percent to 46.80 percent," found the study.
The International Agency for Research on Cancer, under the World Health Organization, has also linked lung cancer to air pollution.
In October 2013, the IARC said outdoor air pollution was one of the leading environmental causes of cancer.
"After painstakingly reviewing the latest available scientific literature, the world’s leading experts, convened by IARC, said there is sufficient evidence that exposure to outdoor air pollution causes lung cancer." the agency said.
Hospitals in Beijing have reported a rise in patients seeking treatment for respiratory problems since smog descended on the capital seven days ago.
Zhao Hongmei, a respiratory medicine doctor at Beijing Bo’ai Hospital, said his department has been overwhelmed with patients.
"Usually a doctor in my department sees 40-50 patients every morning. Now, the number has increased to 70," she said. "We have been working at full capacity since the Spring Festival."
She said the number of patients in their 30s and 40s has increased markedly since the smog hit.
"Most showed symptoms such as coughing and sore throats, but X-rays showed that their lungs were not infected.”
Zhou Jipu, a doctor with the respiratory department of the Beijing Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, said he has seen an increase in elderly patients with underlying diseases in his department since the Spring Festival, and that the smog has worsened their conditions.
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