< SUM TYPE="PERDOC " SIZE="100 " DOCREF="WSJ880909 - 0170 " SELECTOR="F " A study of 248,046 US veterans showed that heavy smokers ( more than 21 cigarettes a day ) had a 93 % greater chance of developing fatal leukemia than those who never smoked . For smoking between 10 and 20 cigarettes a day the mortality risk was 75 % , and 31 % for fewer than ten cigarettes a day . The latest analysis does n't prove a causal link , but an editorial in a British Medical Journal said that if the link is causal , " then smoking is a more important cause of leukemia than all other cancer causes combined . " And men using fewer than 10 cigarettes daily were 31% more likely to die from leukemia than nonsmokers, according to the report. Leukemia is the third leading cause of death among American 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 ( more than 21 cigarettes a day ) had a 93 % greater chance of developing fatal leukemia than those who never smoked . For smoking between 10 and 20 cigarettes a day the mortality risk was 75 % , and 31 % for fewer than ten cigarettes a day . The latest analysis does n't prove a causal link , but an editorial in a British Medical Journal said that if the link is causal , " then smoking is a more important cause of leukemia than all other cancer causes combined . " Leukemia is the third leading cause of death among American children and fifth overall in cancer deaths .