Smoking increases the risk of developing COPD and Lung cancer

Dear Ask The Doctor: I WAS WONDERING AT WHAT AGE CAN YOU DEVELOP THESE DISEASES IF YOU WERE AN ON AND OFF AGAIN SMOKER FOR SEVERAL YEARS. i HAVE NO WHEEZING NO COUGHING NO COUGHING UP PHLEGM I JUST HAVE AN EXTREMELY HARD TIME GETTING A SATISFYING DEEP BREATH IN WHENEVER IM AROUND SMOKE. CURRENTLY NOT SMOKING. VERY SCARED.

Dear SARA: The natural history and prognosis of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), which includes chronic bronchitis and emphysema, are variable and difficult to predict. They probably depend upon a number of factors including genetic predisposition, environmental exposures, coexisting medical conditions, and, to a lesser degree, acute exacerbations. Equally it is difficult to predict the development of lung cancer in smokers. Estimates of the relative risk of lung cancer in the long-term smoker compared with the lifetime nonsmoker vary from 10- to 30-fold. The cumulative lung cancer risk among heavy smokers may be as high as 30 percent, compared with a lifetime risk of lung cancer of 1 percent or less in nonsmoker. The single best intervention is to stop completely, to reduce your risk of developing any of these diseases. With the symptoms you describe, I would advise consulting your family doctor to arrange spirometry to assess baseline lung function.