Tobacco Use Smoking Status indicates the patient’s past or current smoking use of tobacco (cigarette, cigar and/or pipe).

Reliable registry-based tobacco use data will help public health planners and clinicians target and assess tobacco control efforts. Tobacco use data at diagnosis may help health professionals better understand how tobacco use impacts cancer outcomes, prognosis, and effectiveness of treatment. Smoking status may be a useful covariate risk factor for cancer cluster investigations.

Code

• Record cigarette, cigar, and/or pipe use only. Tobacco Use Smoking Status does not include marijuana, chewing tobacco, e-cigarettes, or vaping devices.
• Tobacco smoking history can be obtained from sections such as the Nursing Interview Guide, Flow Chart, Vital Stats or Nursing Assessment section, or other available sources from the patient's hospital medical record or physician office record.
• Use code 1 if there is evidence in the medical record that the patient quit smoking within 30 days prior to diagnosis. The 30 days prior information is intended to differentiate patients who may have quit recently due to symptoms that led to a cancer diagnosis. 
• Use code 2 if medical record indicates patient smoked tobacco in the past, but does not smoke now. Patient must have quit 31 or more days prior to cancer diagnosis to be coded as ‘Former smoker.’
• Use code 3 if it cannot be determined whether the patient currently smokes or formerly smoked. For example, the medical record only indicates “Yes” for smoking without further information.
• Use code 9 (Unknown if ever smoked) rather than code 0 (Never smoker), if
  • the medical record only indicates “No” for tobacco use;
  • smoking status is not stated or provided; or
  • the method (cigarette, pipe, cigar) used cannot be verified in the chart.
• This data item can be left blank for cases diagnosed prior to 1/1/2022.