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# Wildfire PM2.5 exposure is linked to shorter survival in older US lung cancer patients
- URL: https://www.coios.me/wildfire-pm2-5-exposure-is-linked-to-shorter-survival-in/
- Published: 2026-09-17T09:22:33.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-17T09:22:33.000Z
- Description: A SEER-Medicare cohort of 414,016 patients aged 65 or older with lung cancer linked residential zip-code estimates of wildfire-related and non-wildfire PM2.5 from 2008 to 2019 to all-cause mortality, separating the two sources of fine particulate exposure.
- Author: Daniel Ryan
- Tags: Healthcare today, Cancer, Environment: air, heat, cold, United States, #peer-reviewed, #new, #item, #source-2026-09

The study followed 414,016 US patients aged 65 or older with histologically confirmed small-cell or non-small-cell lung cancer diagnosed between 2006 and 2019, contributing 1.21 million person-years with a median follow-up of 2 years. Daily modelled wildfire-related and non-wildfire PM2.5 were aggregated to residential zip code and entered as 3-year moving averages in time-varying Cox models of all-cause mortality. The analysis separates wildfire smoke from other fine particulate exposure in a population already diagnosed with lung cancer.

*Why it is interesting: It treats wildfire smoke as a distinct exposure with its own survival effect, in a cohort large enough to separate it from background PM2.5.*

Source

[The Lancet. Oncology, 2026-09-15](https://doi.org/10.1016/s1470-2045%2826%2900295-0?ref=coios.me)

DOI

10.1016/s1470-2045(26)00295-0

Type

Peer-reviewed article

Design

Retrospective registry cohort, SEER-Medicare, 414,016 patients aged 65+ with lung cancer, 2008-2019, 1.21m person-years, time-varying Cox models of 3-year moving average exposure

Verdict

New finding

Driver

[Cancer](https://www.coios.me/d-cancer/)

Driver

[Environment: air, heat, cold](https://www.coios.me/d-environment/)