On March 30, Oxford’s Carcinogenesis magazine published an article titled, “The carcinogenicity of e-cigarettes: a qualitative risk assessment,” where the authors concluded that nicotine-based e-cigarettes are “likely to be carcinogenic” to users, potentially contributing to oral and lung cancer risk. The authors admitted that the actual risk in humans was uncertain, but said research found DNA damage, oxidative stress, inflammation, and epigenetic changes in oral and respiratory tissues linked to exposure to vape-derived chemicals such as nicotine-derived nitrosamines, volatile organic compounds, flavoring agents, and trace metals.
The article received immediate criticism, beginning with Peter Hajek, professor of clinical psychology and director of the Health and Lifestyle Research Unit at Queen Mary University of London, who said, “The review’s conclusions are misleading. The authors specify early on that they are not comparing vapers and smokers. This allows them to present a detection of any level of a suspect chemical, however negligible, as ‘carcinogenic.’”
The basis of the research focused on studies published between 2017 and 2025.
“This is largely a qualitative review drawing heavily on low-quality studies, including in vitro [study of cells] and animal experiments using unrealistic exposure scenarios,” said Dr. Marina Murphy, senior director of scientific affairs for Haypp Group. “Such studies may demonstrate biological plausibility, but plausibility alone is a weak basis for public health alarm – especially when similar mechanisms are observed with everyday exposures such as cooking fumes, cleaning aerosols, and urban air pollution.
“Studying cells can be useful, but limited in what can be deduced from them. If I were to pour coffee on cells in a lab, they would die. Should I conclude that coffee will kill me? The answer is obviously ‘no!’”
John Dunne, the director general of the UK Vaping Industry Association, said the misinformation in the article does a disservice to the millions of people using vapes to quit smoking.
“The NHS, the Royal College of Physicians, and the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities, all agree that vaping – while not risk-free – is significantly less harmful than smoking,” Dunne said. “Cancer Research UK, the world’s largest independent cancer charity, maintains there is ‘no good evidence’ that vaping causes cancer. [The report] is exactly this kind of confusion that threatens the nation’s smoke-free future.”
