Cigarette smoking in relation to survival in Black women with ovarian cancer: Evidence from the African American Cancer Epidemiology Study (AACES)
Menée à partir de données multicentriques portant sur 592 patientes afro-américaines atteintes d'un cancer épithélial de l'ovaire (durée moyenne de suivi : 5,5 ans), cette étude analyse l'association entre le statut tabagique et la survie spécifique
Background: Numerous studies have documented the negative impact of cigarette smoking on ovarian cancer survival, but the participants in these prior studies were predominantly White women. In comparison, Black women experience significantly worse ovarian cancer survival, which may be due in part to dissimilar risk factor profiles or factors associated with survival. We therefore examined the association between cigarette smoking and survival in a cohort of Black women with ovarian cancer.
Methods: This study included participants in the multi-site population-based African American Cancer Epidemiology Study (AACES), a prospective cohort study of 592 Black women with epithelial ovarian cancer followed up for an average of 5.5 years. Cox proportional hazards models were fit to estimate the association between cigarette smoking status (current and former smoking vs. never smoking) and all-cause mortality adjusting for sociodemographic, lifestyle, and clinical factors.
Results: Compared with women who never smoked cigarettes, women who currently smoked cigarettes experienced worse, but not statistically significant, survival (HR 1.41; 95% CI 0.95– 2.10), whereas women who had quit smoking had comparable survival (HR 1.06; 95%CI 0.82–1.35). Among former smokers, the association among those who quit smoking within the past five years was of similar magnitude as for current smoking (HR 1.37; 95% CI 0.97-1.94) but no risk was observed among those who quit for >5 years.
Conclusion: Black women with epithelial ovarian cancer who were current smokers experienced worse survival than those who never smoked cigarettes. Even though this association was not statistically significant, the magnitude of the association is similar to prior studies comprised predominantly of White women. Ensuring access to evidence-based smoking cessation strategies represents a potential avenue for reducing mortality in Black women with ovarian cancer.
Annals of Epidemiology , résumé, 2025