Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40268402›Full record

ArticleTobacco control2026

Tobacco industry influence on breast cancer research, policy and public opinion: scoping the Truth Tobacco Industry Documents.

Eileen Han, Eric Crosbie, Pamela Ling, Sara Perez, Huma Khan, Robert Hiatt, Cristin Kearns

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Tobacco control, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Eileen HanDivision of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3443-4240
Eric CrosbieSchool of Public Health, University of Nevada, Reno, NV, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6219-298X
Pamela LingDivision of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6166-9347
Sara PerezSchool of Public Health, University of Nevada, Reno, NV, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0009-8922-9939
Huma KhanSchool of Public Health, University of Nevada, Reno, NV, USA.
Robert HiattDepartment of Epidemiology & Biostatistics, Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7174-8436
Cristin KearnsPreventive and Restorative Dental Sciences and Philip R. Lee Institute for Health Policy Studies, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA cristin.kearns@ucsf.edu.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6885-2304

Funding

Overcoming Barriers to Implementing Policies to Reduce Sugar Consumption for Dental Caries PreventionK08DE028947 · NIDCR · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO · PI KEARNS, CRISTIN ELIZABETH · 2020 to 2024
$874k
NIDCR NIH HHS K08 DE028947
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectiveOver the last 35 years, there has been growing evidence suggesting a relationship between tobacco use and breast cancer. The tobacco industry's role in shaping research, policy and public opinion about the relationship is unknown. This study's objective is to determine if the tobacco industry-funded Council for Tobacco Research (CTR) Records and the Tobacco Institute (TI) Records, housed in the Truth Tobacco Industry Document Archive, contain documents related to internal research about breast cancer and strategies to influence the science and public opinion about breast cancer causes.

methodsWe applied the situational scoping method, in which community advocates and university researchers collaborate, to (1) identify external events considered by CTR or TI as a threat or opportunity to business interests; (2) select events for further analysis and (3) conduct social worlds/arenas mapping of industry responses to selected events.

resultsThe CTR and TI Records contained 19 719 documents with the search term 'breast cancer' ranging from the 1950s to 1998. We analysed nine events relevant to the aim of this research. CTR and TI responded to external threats, pointing out methodological problems in studies they perceived as threatening, or characterising lung cancer as misdiagnosed or metastasised breast cancer. They responded to external opportunities with promoting and funding research focusing on smoking's 'protective effects' over breast cancer, and breast cancer's genetic, hormonal and dietary causes.

conclusionThe CTR and TI Records are a rich source of documents related to tobacco industry efforts to influence breast cancer research, policy and public opinion away from any aetiologic relationship between tobacco use and breast cancer.

Indexed as

Breast NeoplasmsHealth PolicyPublic OpinionSmokingTobacco IndustryBiomedical ResearchFemaleHumansCarcinogensSecondhand smokeTobacco industryTobacco industry documents

Identifiers

PMID40268402
PMCPMC12341490

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.