Tobacco use is responsible for nearly one in five deaths in the United States.”
“For each 1,000 tons of tobacco produced, about 1,000 people eventually will die. Lifelong smokers on average have a 50 percent chance of dying from tobacco-related illnesses, with half of these dying before the age of 70.”
The single greatest risk factor for oral cancer is tobacco. Oral cancer cases are seen in patients who do not use tobacco, (see the HPV connection link on the home page navigation bar) and there are also people who develop the disease with no known risk factors. The numbers as a percentage of these is are very small. Tobacco, in spite of these other causes and unknowns still is the largest contributor to the development of oral cancers. All forms of tobacco have been implicated as causative agents including cigarette, cigar and pipe tobacco, as well as chewing tobacco. It is important to differentiate between conventional loose leaf (traditional) forms of smokeless tobaccos and the newer types such as snus, as evidence from outside the US suggests that there is a significant difference in risk. But it must