A small study that compared the lungs of cigarette smokers with e-cigarette smokers found that e-cigarette smokers had more lung inflammation than those who smoked tobacco. The pilot study, published in The Journal of Nuclear Medicine, is the first to use PET imaging to compare smokers’ lungs with vapers’ lungs.
E-cigarettes are now much more than “new smoking cessation tools”, they are big business. The global e-cigarette or “vape” market value has increased from US$1.7 billion in 2013 (£1.4 billion) to an estimated all-time high of US$24.6 billion in 2022 (£20.8 billion). This massive increase in sales reflects an increase in usage beyond the ex-smoker market. Youth uptake is also at an all-time high. Current figures suggest one in ten middle- to high-school students in the US uses an e-cigarette.
Understanding the effects that e-cigarettes have on the lungs is essential for doctors to prepare for the future. Tobacco cigarettes were originally regarded as an aid to a healthy lifestyle. This poor understanding persisted while scientific evidence battled with economic interest from big tobacco companies, before the actual devastating effects of smoking were revealed decades too late. This same economic interest persists today, so it is vital for scientists to examine all the emerging evidence to ensure history does not repeat itself.
