Does E-Cigarette Use Increase the Risk of Cancer?

Monday, March 3, 2025

New research explores effects of e-cigarette use on RNA expression

E-cigarette use, including vaping, is often seen as a safer and trendier alternative to traditional tobacco products. However, a new study from researchers at the University of Rochester Medical Center published in Scientific Reports suggests an elevation of carcinogenic cellular signaling pathways in exclusive e-cigarette users when compared to non-users.

“Exosomal microRNAs play a crucial role in inflammation and disease processes like cancer,” said Dongmei Li, PhD, first author, professor of Clinical and Translational Research, and the director of Translational Science Statistical Support Services for the Clinical and Translational Science Institute. “However, little is known about how exclusive e-cigarette use affects exosomal microRNAs, which regulate genes that influence cancer-causing pathways.”

By comparing exosomal microRNA profiles between exclusive e-cigarette users and non-users, the researchers identified several exosomal microRNAs that are upregulated—more active than normal—in exclusive e-cigarette users. These overactive microRNAs are involved in cancer pathways, suggesting an elevation of carcinogenic cellular signaling pathways in exclusive e-cigarette users.

E-cigarettes are electronic smoking devices that vaporize liquid for inhalation by the user. These liquids and aerosols typically contain various combinations of propylene glycol, vegetable glycerin, nicotine, flavoring agents, and other chemicals.

With the National Youth Tobacco Survey of 2024 reporting that 7.8% of high school students and 3.5% of middle school students self-reported current e-cigarette use, and with e-cigarettes the most prevalent tobacco product used by those groups, exploring the potential link the behavior has with cancer is increasingly important to inform the public and future regulatory policies.

This study was funded by an R21 grant from the National Institutes of Health. Li and Zidian Xie, PhD, utilized blood plasma specimens from the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health Study biorepositories to analyze exosomal epigenetic biomarkers—microRNAs—associated with flavored e-cigarette usage. They recorded changes in the epigenetic biomarkers and related biological pathways in the group of users, using non-users as a reference.

Li and Xie then collaborated with Irfan Rahman, PhD, professor of Environmental Medicine, and Sadiya Bi Shaikh, PhD, to conduct innovative experiments on primary airway epithelial cells, including wound-healing and DNA damage assays from non-users, to determine the toxicity and inflammatory response. Shaikh, a postdoctoral researcher in Rahman’s lab, conducted the wound-healing and DNA damage assays.