Cheryl, my mother smoked several packs a day and never got cancer from it. I really don't think there is a single doctor that would take a young woman with few risk factors and give them preferential treatment over someone older with many risk factors. That just seems ludicrous and completely opposite of the Hippocratic Oath. Smoke for 20 years or more and your risk for cancer will not decrease for decades. The truth is, if there are lifestyle factors that are causative for cancer, continuing any of those will increase your risk of cancer. Unfortunately, there are few cancers with direct links to causative factors. If that weren't the case,there would be no cancer.

We are all different and somewhat unique. If smoking, although bad from any perspective, was always a cause of cancer, tobacco would be banned. Environmental pollutants can never be excluded either but many people living in industrialized environments still thrive without cancer while some don't.

I don't smoke and I am having significant oxygenation issues caused by radiation induced fibrosis in my left lung. Reduced blood supply is slowly rendering my marrow incapable of producing red blood. My spinal vertebrae have died off and I stopped checking after the entire cervical spine died a couple of years ago. My CO2 buildup is now in the blood. All from compromised breathing due to radiation fibrosis.

I don't think there is one magical answer and if we talk up smoking as the threat we should start adding a million other threats like environmental factors and nutrition.