Recent headlines have once again reignited confusion around vaping safety
In this article...
Researchers in Australia have claimed vaping can cause mouth and lung cancer in an article published by the Daily Mail. The piece suggests vaping is not a safer alternative to smoking after reviewing literature around the potential harms of vaping between 2017-2025.
As a long-standing authority on vaping, we believe it’s our duty to challenge misinformation with evidence. Below, we break down the claims, explain why they are misleading, and present scientific consensus from credible experts.
What The Article Claims
The Daily Mail article says that Australian researchers reviewed literature around the potential harms of vaping between 2017-2025, suggesting:
- Vaping could be linked to lung cancer and oral cancer
- E-cigarettes are "not safer than smoking"
- Chemicals found in vapour may have carcinogenic potential
- Vaping can change a user’s DNA, increasing the risk of cell malfunction linked to cancer.
On the surface, the claims sound concerning. But the way they have been presented lacks important context. It misrepresents the current, accepted scientific consensus; vaping is much safer than smoking. We have also tackled the DNA claim in a previous article.
Our Position – Misleading, Incomplete, Not Grounded In Reality
To be clear, there is currently no robust clinical or epidemiological evidence that demonstrates vaping causes cancer in humans.
The claims made in the article are mostly based on risk models and theoretical assessments, not real world data. This context is key, and usually ignored in sensationalist reporting.
Public health bodies, including the NHS, have so far maintained a consistent position:
Vaping is at least 95% safer than smoking
This isn’t based on theories, it is a reflection of years of toxicological analysis, biomarker studies, and real data.
We know smoking kills due to tobacco producing tar, carbon monoxide and thousands of toxic chemicals. By contrast, vaping is non combustible, and contains a tiny fraction of chemicals found in tobacco.
What The Experts Say
To evaluate the claims in this misleading article, we highlight expert analysis published by the Science Media Centre. This has commentary from leading toxicologists, epidemiologists, and cancer researchers.
Here’s what these experts had to say:
"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'. What matters is the comparison with smoking. The crucial bit of information that the review omits is that vaping exposes users to only a very small fraction of some of the carcinogens in tobacco smoke, and to none at all of the rest. Misinforming smokers risks discouraging them from using e-cigarettes, which are one of the most effective methods that exist to help people stop smoking. Switching from smoking to vaping removes the major source of all smoking related diseases, including cancer." – Prof Peter Hajek, Professor of Clinical Psychology and Director of the Health and Lifestyle Research Unit, Queen Mary University of London
"This narrative review is problematic for several reasons and makes extraordinary claims that are not borne out by the data. This review does not offer a 'smoking gun' that e-cigarettes cause oral or lung cancer, nor does it make an attempt at quantifying this risk, which is unsurprising because the evidence is simply not there to allow for such an estimation." – Prof Lion Shahab, Professor of Health Psychology and Co-Director of the UCL Tobacco and Alcohol Research Group, University College London
"It would require quite a stretch of the imagination to envisage how vaping compounds could match the cancer-causing effects of combustion smoking." – Prof Stephen Duffy, Emeritus Professor of Cancer Screening at Queen Mary University of London
Risk Does Not Equal Harm
Another key issue is confusion between risk vs harm.
"Where they missed the boat, and did not cite, are the numerous studies showing substantially reduced carcinogenic exposures when people who smoke switch to vaping" – Prof Peter Shields, Emeritus Professor of Medical Oncology at the Ohio State University
This is a fundamental principle in toxicology: dosage makes all the difference. Many substances are harmful at high levels but negligible at the levels found in regulated vaping products.
Vaping Is Still Significantly Less Harmful Than Smoking
The Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID) which is referenced by the NHS, for example, maintains that it is at least 95% safer than smoking.
This aligns with various experts and global health bodies, who continue to reaffirm that vaping is vastly safer than smoking.
Misinformation like the claims made in the Daily Mail’s article can have real consequences. In short, these headlines are dangerous. When smokers are led to believe that vaping is just as harmful as smoking, they are less likely to switch. That's a dire public health failure.
What we know is this:
- Smoking remains the leading cause of preventable death
- Vaping is one of the most effective harm reduction tools available
- Misleading comparisons undermine quitting efforts
The learning? We must choose real evidence over sensationalist headlines.
Final Thoughts
At The Electronic Cigarette Company, we believe the vaping industry should absolutely be held to high safety and regulatory standards. But, that conversation must be grounded in accurate, science led data. Clickbait headlines do not give people clarity, and at worst, spread dangerous misinformation.
Let’s summarise what we know:
- There is no conclusive evidence linking vaping to cancer in humans
- The claims made in the article are based on theoretical risk models, not clinical outcomes
- Leading experts and institutions reject the interpretation presented in the article
- Authoritative bodies like the UKHSA and NHS continue to confirm vaping is significantly less harmful than smoking and a valuable quit smoking tool
Smokers and vapers deserve clear, evidence based information. As it stands, the evidence is firmly in favour of vaping as a far safer alternative to smoking, not an equivalent risk.
Sources
(1) Daily Mail. (2026) Vaping is linked to lung and mouth cancer in major study, as experts warn: ‘It is NOT safer than smoking’
(2) Science Media Centre. (2026) Expert reaction to qualitative risk assessment on the carcinogenicity of e-cigarettes
(3) NHS. (2022) Vaping to quit smoking
(4) Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID). (2022) Nicotine vaping in England: 2022 evidence update summary
