Epidemiology, prognostic factors, and prevention of lung cancer.

Lung cancer continues to be a leading cause of preventable death, with an estimated 123,000 of the 143,000 lung cancer deaths in the United States in 1991 directly attributable to tobacco smoking. Given that mortality from this disease has not changed appreciably in the past two decades and despite continuing advances in cancer treatment, a new emphasis is being placed on prevention and early detection research through the identification of high-risk individuals and the definition of useful biomarkers. This review summarizes the status of these efforts over the past year.