"98% Contribution of Smokers to Lung Cancer Incidence, Increasing Number of Victims"

National Health Insurance Service Holds 'Tobacco Litigation Seminar'

The National Health Insurance Service, which is conducting a damages claim lawsuit against tobacco companies, held the '2023 Tobacco Litigation Seminar' on the 31st to clarify the causal relationship between smoking and cancer incidence and to urge a shift in the judiciary's perception.

Under the theme of 'Individual Causal Relationship between Tobacco and Cancer,' the tobacco litigation seminar shared in-depth research results on heavy smokers' smoking experiences and confirmed the causes and responsibilities of smoking-related harms through discussions with related experts.

In 2014, the Service filed a damages claim lawsuit worth 53.3 billion KRW against tobacco companies (KT&G, Korea Philip Morris, BAT Korea). However, on November 2020, the first trial court dismissed the claim, stating that "it cannot be ruled out that the plaintiffs developed the disease due to other factors besides smoking, such as individual lifestyle habits, genetics, surrounding environment, and occupational characteristics."

The Service appealed, and the appellate trial is currently underway. Last year, qualitative research was conducted, including one-on-one in-depth interviews with 30 heavy smokers.

Jung Ki-seok, Director of the Service, said, "Medical expenses due to smoking, which were 1.7 trillion KRW at the time of filing the lawsuit, have more than doubled to 3.5 trillion KRW in 2021," adding, "The damage caused by smoking continues to grow."

Lee Kang-sook, Chairperson of the Korea Anti-Smoking Movement Association and the presenter, pointed out the errors in the first trial court's judgment on tobacco litigation under the theme 'In-depth Tracking of Smoking History in Lung and Laryngeal Cancer Patients.' She further analyzed that some of the heavy smokers confirmed a causal relationship between smoking and diseases such as lung cancer.

Chairperson Lee stated, "It is recognized that the specificity of smoking and the tobacco litigation target cancer types (small cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma of lung cancer, squamous cell carcinoma of laryngeal cancer) is very high," emphasizing, "A just court that does not ignore the truth is needed."

Professor Kim Kwan-wook of the Department of Cultural Anthropology at Duksung Women's University said, "It is questionable whether past smokers started and continued smoking entirely by their own autonomous choice," and added, "We need to consider who should be held responsible for their cancer incidence."

The general latency period for lung cancer is up to 30 years, and based on Korea's past social smoking environment and smokers' testimonies, the core issue is that accurate information about the harms of tobacco was not properly conveyed.

Professor Ji Sun-ha of Yonsei University Graduate School of Public Health, a discussant, emphasized that the contribution of smokers to lung cancer occurrence is as high as 97.8% for small cell carcinoma and 95.9% or more for squamous cell carcinoma, urging that the causal relationship between the tobacco litigation defendants and lung cancer should not be denied and calling for a change in perception by the appellate court.

The Service stated, "We will persuade the court to thoroughly review the evidence submitted in the first trial during the tobacco litigation appeal, and we will also make efforts to find additional evidence such as internal research documents from tobacco companies."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.