Smoking linked to weaker rectal cancer response

Patients smoking at diagnosis were less likely to have a favorable response to treatment before rectal cancer surgery; former smokers were not.

• Among 1,767 patients with stage II–III disease, 25.5% of current smokers had a favorable response score, versus 33.4% of never-smokers.
• Complete tumor response also trended lower in current smokers, but the difference was not statistically clear.

This look back at national records cannot show that smoking caused poorer response or that quitting improves it. It supports discussing smoking cessation during treatment planning.