ABSTRACT
Respiratory tract cancer was a rare disease at the beginning of the twentieth century with only a few hundred cases of lung cancer reported. In 1912, I. Adler was able to collect data on 374 lung cancer cases from the literature. Tobacco smoking has been identified not only as a cause of lung cancer but also cancers of oral cavity and pharynx, in addition to cancers at more remote sites. More than 100 years ago oral cancer was the most common cancer in many parts of the world. Various respiratory epithelial cell types are exposed chronically to tobacco smoke. Studies have shown that air pollution, such as industrial emissions and traffic exhaust, is a risk factor for lung cancer. There is evidence of human lung cancer associated with industrial exposure. Lung is the major target concerning exposure at work to asbestos, radon, mustard gas, coal tar and soot, chloromethyl ethers, beryllium, chromium, nickel, and inorganic arsenic.
