Lung Cancer Risk Factors
Cited in 2 Likelier entries (2 risks, 0 decisions).
Used in 2 entries
For each citing entry, the verbatim excerpt and Likelier's calculation notes (how the source's number was converted to the lifetime-probability framing) are shown below. Click through to read the full claim ledger.
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In the United States, cigarette smoking is linked to about 80% to 90% of lung cancer deaths; indoor radon is another important cause
“"In the United States, cigarette smoking is linked to about 80% to 90% of lung cancer deaths. [...] Indoor radon is another important cause of lung cancer in the United States. [...] The risk of lung cancer from radon exposure is higher for people who smoke than for people who don’t smoke."”
Calculation notes
CDC’s "80% to 90%" US attribution is the domestic anchor for the smoking multiplier and the never-smoker baseline. Combined with the ACS 125,000 annual US lung cancer death figure, that implies ~100,000-112,000 US smoking-attributable lung cancer deaths per year. The remaining ~13,000-25,000 include radon (EPA estimates ~21,000 total radon-attributable lung cancer deaths per year, with ~2,900 among never-smokers), occupational asbestos and diesel exhaust, air pollution, and a residual genetic/idiopathic background.
Independence note: CDC draws on SAMMEC (Smoking-Attributable Mortality, Morbidity, and Economic Costs) and on Cancer Prevention Study II hazard ratios, partially overlapping with the ACS/SEER upstream but with independent attribution methodology.
Source date: 2024-07-22 · Accessed: 2026-04-11
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- Statistic
In the United States, cigarette smoking is linked to about 80% of lung cancer deaths
“"In the United States, cigarette smoking is linked to about 80% of lung cancer deaths."”
Calculation notes
Used as the direct source for the body-text claim that smoking is responsible for roughly 80% of US lung cancer deaths, cited alongside the WHO/Jha/Doll/CDC mortality figures as evidence that this entry is the "meta-entry" behind the site's other tobacco-attributable disease pages (lung cancer, COPD, several other cancers).
Independence note: A separate CDC page from the mortality figures above; both are CDC institutional statements but draw on different underlying surveillance systems (cancer registries vs SAMMEC mortality modeling).
Source date: 2026-05-18 · Accessed: 2026-07-03
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