Electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) are an alternative to traditional tobacco cigarette smoking. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of cigarette smoking and e-cigarette use among university students from Central and Eastern Europe and to investigate personal characteristics associated with cigarette and e-cigarette smoking. A questionnaire-based cross-sectional survey was performed between 2017–2018 among university students in five European countries: Belarus, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, and Slovakia. The questionnaire included 46 questions related to the frequency and habits of traditional cigarettes and e-cigarettes use. Completed questionnaires were obtained from 14,352 students (8800 medical; aged 20.9 ± 2.4 years) with an overall response rate of 72.2%. Two-thirds of the respondents had smoked a traditional tobacco cigarette and 43.7% had used an e-cigarette. Overall current smoking status included 12.3% traditional cigarette smokers, 1.1% e-cigarette users, and 1.8% were dual users with the remainder being non-smokers. Smoking status differed between the research centres (p < 0.001). Females were less likely to try either cigarettes (OR = 0.83) or e-cigarettes (OR = 0.62) and were less likely to be current cigarette (OR = 0.64), e-cigarette (OR = 0.34), or dual users (OR = 0.33) than males. Perception of e-cigarettes significantly differed between smokers and non-smokers (p < 0.001). Among university students, cigarettes are more popular than e-cigarettes.

Our aim is to assess the smoking cessation and vaping cessation activity, including quit attempts and willingness to quit among university students in Central and Eastern Europe, as well as to investigate personal characteristics associated with smoking cessation and vaping cessation attempts. Data were collected by questionnaire which included 46 questions on cigarette and e-cigarette use. Questionnaires were obtained from 14,352 university students (aged 20.9 ± 2.4 years; cooperation rate of 72.2%). For the purposes of this analysis, only data from exclusive cigarette smokers (n = 1716), exclusive e-cigarette users (n = 129), and dual users (216) were included. Of all cigarette smokers, 51.6% had previously tried to quit smoking and 51.5% declared a willingness to quit cigarette smoking in the near future. Among all e-cigarette users only 13.9% had ever tried to quit using the e-cigarette and 25.2% declared a willingness to give up using e-cigarette in the near future. The majority of the group did not use pharmacotherapy to quit cigarette (87.5%) or e-cigarette (88.9%) use. Our results indicate that while most university students have some desire to quit conventional smoking, those who use e-cigarettes do not have the same desire.

In lung cancer patients, two complementary abnormalities were found that can cause disruption of the mitochondrial network: increased fusion and impaired fission, manifested by reduced levels of FIS1, a mitochondrial division regulator, and increased expression of MFN1, a mitochondrial fusion mediator. Immunoexpression studies of MFN1 and FIS1 proteins were performed in serum samples obtained from 47 patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and 21 controls. In the NSCLC patients, the immunoexpression of the MFN1 protein was significantly higher, and the FIS1 protein level was significantly lower than in the control group (p < 0.01; p < 0.001; UMW test). Patients with early, operable lung cancer had significantly lower levels of MFN1 immunoexpression compared to patients with advanced, metastatic lung cancer (p < 0.05; UMW test). This suggests that early stages of the disease are characterized by greater fragmentation of damaged mitochondria and apoptosis. In contrast, lower FIS1 protein levels were associated with a worse prognosis. Increased mitochondrial fusion in the blood of lung cancer patients may suggest an increase in protective and repair mechanisms. This opens up questions about why these mechanisms fail in the context of existing advanced cancer disease and is a starting point for further research into why protective mechanisms fail in lung cancer patients.

Introduction: Type 1 diabetes is an insulin deficiency-based chronic disease. It leads to the development of hyperglycaemia, which plays a key role in the initiation and progression of tissue damage in patients with diabetes. This mostly results from oxidative stress, whose increased severity is observed in this group of patients. Increased levels of 8-isoprostanes are seen in many inflammatory diseases, including asthma, COPD and cystic fibrosis. These diseases demonstrated the usefulness of the exhaled breath condensate (EBC) for extracting material for markers of oxidative stress, including 8-isoprostanes. The purpose of this study was to assess the severity of oxidative stress measured with 8-isoprostane concentrations in the exhaled breath condensate in healthy subjects and in patients with type 1 diabetes with and without vascular complications. Material and methods: 33 patients assigned to the control group, type 1 diabetes without complications group and type 1 diabetes group with advanced complications were included in the study. Retinopathy, nephropathy or neuropathy have been reported as a criterion distinguishing between complicated and uncomplicated diabetes. EBC was obtained for each subject. 8-isoprostane concentrations were determined in serum and EBC by ELISA. Results and conclusions: Mean (± SD) blood levels of 8-isoprostane in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus without complications and those with type 1 diabetes with advanced complications were significantly higher compared to the control group (178.17 [135.73] vs. 183.34 [200.41] vs. 47.13 [25.20] pg/ml; p < 0.05). The mean (± SD) concentration of 8-isoprostane in EBC was lower in diabetic patients with type 1 diabetes with advanced complications than in patients with type 1 diabetes without advanced complications and in the control group (8.32 [4.60] vs. 19.13 [22.35] vs. 28.17 [35.11] pg/ml; p < 0.05). Measurement of 8-isoprostanes in the EBC in patients with type 1 diabetes does not appear to be a good diagnostic tool for monitoring the activity of oxidative stress in these patients. Introduction: Type 1 diabetes is an insulin deficiency-based chronic disease. It leads to the development of hyperglycaemia, which plays a key role in the initiation and progression of tissue damage in patients with diabetes. This mostly results from oxidative stress, whose increased severity is observed in this group of patients. Increased levels of 8-isoprostanes are seen in many inflammatory diseases, including asthma, COPD and cystic fibrosis. These diseases demonstrated the usefulness of the exhaled breath condensate (EBC) for extracting material for markers of oxidative stress, including 8-isoprostanes. The purpose of this study was to assess the severity of oxidative stress measured with 8-isoprostane concentrations in the exhaled breath condensate in healthy subjects and in patients with type 1 diabetes with and without vascular complications. Material and methods: 33 patients assigned to the control group, type 1 diabetes without complications group and type 1 diabetes group with advanced complications were included in the study. Retinopathy, nephropathy or neuropathy have been reported as a criterion distinguishing between complicated and uncomplicated diabetes. EBC was obtained for each subject. 8-isoprostane concentrations were determined in serum and EBC by ELISA. Results and conclusions: Mean (± SD) blood levels of 8-isoprostane in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus without complications and those with type 1 diabetes with advanced complications were significantly higher compared to the control group (178.17 [135.73] vs. 183.34 [200.41] vs. 47.13 [25.20] pg/ml; p < 0.05). The mean (± SD) concentration of 8-isoprostane in EBC was lower in diabetic patients with type 1 diabetes with advanced complications than in patients with type 1 diabetes without advanced complications and in the control group (8.32 [4.60] vs. 19.13 [22.35] vs. 28.17 [35.11] pg/ml; p < 0.05). Measurement of 8-isoprostanes in the EBC in patients with type 1 diabetes does not appear to be a good diagnostic tool for monitoring the activity of oxidative stress in these patients.