*If cigarette smoking is injurious and can lead to cancer, then how come so many still survive despite smoking for 45-65 years?* https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaLeCqqFCCoeBnaiF743 It's not just about survival but your quality of life. Sure, smokers can live to be an old age but most of them suffer from some form of cigarette induced disability. Now I dont know about you but I want to arrive at my finish line with the least amount of deficit as possible. I don't expect to be running marathons at age 80 but I'd like to be able to walk up the steps without stopping every few steps and gasping for air. I don't want to have one side paralyzed because cigarette smoking clogged my carotid arteries and caused a stroke. Or, being tethered to oxygen 24/7 from emphysema and constantly struggling to breathe. My dear father-in-law was a 3 pack a day smoker for over 30 years. Up until he had a heart attack at age 50. He stopped smoking cold turkey when it happened but the damage was already done. About 15 years later, he developed bladder cancer, which was a direct result from his smoking. The cancer was very advanced so they had to remove his bladder. They rerouted his ureters to empty out urine via a stoma in his abdomen. He had to wear a urostomy bag for the rest of his life. So yeah, he survived the cancer but at what price? The bags were expensive, the adhesive irritated his skin and the bag occasionally leaked. All from cigarettes. His prior heart attack had weakened his heart muscle so he eventually developed congestive heart failure, too. This is in addition to a few other (non-cigarette related) conditions along the way, such as diabetes & end stage kidney failure. He had to go on dialysis for the last few years of his life. So yes, he survived to age 84 but his quality of life was horrible at the end. Once you get older, you'll find that life throws enough unwanted and undeserved health conditions in your direction. Why would you want to add more to the mix?