title: Rationale and approaches to the prevention of smoking-related diseases: overview of recent studies on chemoprevention of smoking-induced tumors in rodent models.
abstract: Tobacco smoke plays a dominant role in the epidemiology of lung cancer, cancer at other sites, and a variety of other chronic diseases. It is the leading cause of death in developed countries, and the global burden of cancer is escalating in less developed regions. For a rational implementation of strategies exploitable for the prevention smoking-related diseases, it is crucial to elucidate both the mechanisms of action of cigarette smoke and the protective mechanisms of the host organism. The imperative primary prevention goal is to avoid any type of exposure to smoke. Epidemiological studies have shown that a decrease in the consumption of cigarettes can be successful in attenuating the epidemic of lung cancer in several countries. Chemoprevention by means of dietary and/or pharmacological agents provides a complementary strategy aimed at decreasing the risk of developing smoking-associated diseases in addicted current smokers, who are unable to quit smoking, and especially in involuntary smokers and ex-smokers. The availability of new animal models that are suitable to detect the carcinogenicity of cigarette smoke and to assess the underlying molecular mechanisms provides new tools for evaluating both safety and efficacy of putative chemopreventive agents.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Health Sciences , University of Genoa , Italy.
authors.forename: Silvio
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: De Flora
authors.forename: Alberto
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Izzotti
authors.forename: Francesco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: D'Agostini
authors.forename: Sebastiano
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: La Maestra
authors.forename: Rosanna T
authors.initials: RT
authors.lastname: Micale
authors.forename: Chiara
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ceccaroli
authors.forename: Vernon E
authors.initials: VE
authors.lastname: Steele
authors.forename: Roumen
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Balansky
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D016588:Anticarcinogenic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D063646:Carcinogenesis / Q000139:chemically induced; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D051381:Rats; D012907:Smoking; D014028:Tobacco Smoke Pollution / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000517:prevention & control
chemical_list: D016588:Anticarcinogenic Agents; D014028:Tobacco Smoke Pollution
keywords: Tobacco smoke; chemoprevention; mechanisms; molecular end-points; prevention