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News
Smoking and sarcoma: a dangerous duo. A new retrospective study of 399 sarcoma patients found that active smokers had significantly worse progression-free survival and nearly twice the risk of distant metastases compared to non-smokers. Researchers say the findings give clinicians a concrete, modifiable risk factor to discuss with patients.
Smoking is already a well-known risk factor in many cancers — and now it's being linked to worse outcomes in sarcoma, a rare and heterogeneous cancer affecting soft tissue and bone. A retrospective study presented at the ASTRO Annual Meeting found that active smokers with sarcoma faced significantly higher risks of disease progression and distant metastases compared to non-smokers, with researchers describing the difference as "profound."
The study followed 399 sarcoma patients and tracked overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS), and distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS). While early OS looked similar between groups, the gaps widened meaningfully over time — particularly for disease control outcomes.
By the Numbers:
Why it matters: With over 18,000 new sarcoma diagnoses expected in the U.S. in 2026, identifying modifiable risk factors is critical. These findings give oncologists a tangible talking point for smoking cessation conversations — and open the door to future research on how smoking affects tumor biology across sarcoma's many subtypes.
