New research from Fudan University in China suggests that people with a gene variant that stops the body from protecting against cigarette-smoke toxins may face an increased risk of developing lung cancer, the Washington Post reported Dec. 22.

Researchers linked flawed variants of the ABCB1 and ABCC1 genes, which normally protect the lungs by removing the cigarette toxin nitrosamine, to subjects with lung cancer. Women and those under the age of 60 who had one of variants (ABCB1 rs3842) showed increased risk of cancer.

"Because tobacco smoking is the leading preventable cause of cancer and the cancer-prone genotypes of these genetic components are relatively prevalent in the human population, our findings have important implications for the prevention of tobacco smoking-related cancers," according to the study authors

The findings were published online Dec. 22, 2008 in the journal Cancer.