<SUM TYPE="PERDOC " SIZE="100" DOCREF="WSJ880909-0170" SELECTOR="F" A study of 248,046 US veterans showed that heavy smokers ( between 10 and 20 cigarettes a day) had a 31% greater chance of developing fatal leukemia than those who never smoked. For smoking more than 21 cigarettes a day the increased risk was 75% , and 93% for fewer than ten cigarettes a day. The analysis, based on a previous study of 248,046 U.S. veterans, offers the firmest link yet between cigarette consumption and the disease. The latest analysis doesn't prove a causal link, but an editorial in a the Medical College of St. Bartholomew's Hospital said that if the link is causal, "then smoking is a more important cause of leukemia than all other known causes combined." Leukemia is the third leading cause of death among US children and fifth overall in cancer deaths.
<SUM TYPE="PERDOC" SIZE="100" DOCREF="WSJ880909-0170" SELECTOR="F" A study of 248,046 US veterans showed that heavy smokers ( between 10 and 20 cigarettes a day) had a 31% greater chance of developing fatal leukemia than those who never smoked. For smoking more than 21 cigarettes a day the increased risk was 75% , and 93% for fewer than ten cigarettes a day. The latest analysis doesn't prove a causal link, but an editorial in a the Medical College of St. Bartholomew's Hospital said that if the link is causal, "then smoking is a more important cause of leukemia than all other known causes combined." Leukemia is the third leading cause of death among US children and fifth overall in cancer deaths.