Abstract
Electronic cigarettes (E-cigs) smoking or vaping is an emerging problem to public health due to its popularity. While its multi-faceted detrimental effects on human health are being reported, no current study addresses the effect of E-cigs on tumor metastasis, the main cause of tumor mortality. Using a well-established human breast cancer cell line MDA MB-231, we first showed that E-cig vapor extract (nicotine 24 mg/ml, propylene glycol 50%, vegetable glycerin 50%, no flavorings) significantly enhanced tumor cell migration (P<0.0001), but showed no significant effect on tumor cell proliferation (P>0.05). To evaluate the metastasis-promoting effect of E-cigs in vivo, we used NOD-SCID-Gamma mice and introduced tumor cells to the mice by tail vein injection. Among these mice, 4-week E-cigs exposure (nicotine 24 mg/ml, propylene glycol 50%, vegetable glycerin 50%, no flavorings, 2 h/day, 5 days/week) almost doubled the tumor load in the exposed lungs compared to controls (P=0.0036). While E-cig exposure did not alter the proliferative index of tumor cells colonized in the lungs (P=0.7953), tumor cell apoptosis was significantly reduced (P<0.001). Taken together, our data for the first time, demonstrated the lung colonization-promoting effects of E-cigs on human breast cancer cells. These findings show the risks of E-cigs on the lung metastasis of various cancers, and warrant more studies on the underlying mechanisms.