Is a former smoker always vulnerable to lung cancer?

Is a former smoker always vulnerable to lung cancer?

Jay M. Lee (Surgical Director, Thoracic Oncology Program, UCLA) gives expert video advice on: Does the age I started smoking affect the odds I will develop lung cancer?; Does the amount I smoke affect your odds of developing lung cancer?; Why do people who never smoke develop lung cancer? and more...

Lung cancer risk is certainly reduced by smoking cessation. This is an area that is extensively studied, and with how much reduction in lung cancer risk is attributed to smoking cessation there is a little variable. But certain reports have noted that even with as far out as 30 years of smoking cessation, patients still have an increased risk of lung cancer. This has been quoted at somewhere around 10%.