A new study has suggested that vaping 'could increase the risk of breast cancer'
Scientists from a group of American universities, including Yale, Johns Hopkins and Princeton have found exposure to e-cigarette vapour creates a "tumour-promoting environment" in the breast and elsewhere in the body.
A surgeon at the London Breast Institute at the Princess Grace Hospital named Professor Kefah Mokbel warned the findings should be a wake-up call to those who think the devices are harmless, or better than smoking normal cigarettes.
"This study provides a good level of evidence that vaping has the potential to induce breast cancer and promote its progression and spread to the lungs," he said.
He went on to add that it is a "misconception" that e-cigarettes are safe and believes that vaping could prompt the development of other types of cancer.
The study used female mice to conduct the findings, with some of the rodents kept in fresh air while others were exposed to e-cigarette vapour.
After a fortnight, all were injected with breast cancer. At the end of six weeks, tumours had grown almost twice as fast in the mice exposed to the vapour.
The mice who inhaled e-cigarette vapour were also more likely to develop pulmonary metastasis – secondary malignant tumours in the lung, which is often fatal when it occurs in humans.
Writing in the journal Cancer Letters, the team stated that "young women represent a target of e-cigarette companies", and the results came in the context of "the increasing popularity of vaping, especially in teenagers".
Professor Charles Coombes, of the Cancer Research UK Imperial Centre said: "The results are suggestive but not conclusive."
The news comes after it was reported earlier this month that e-cigarettes can produce new toxic chemicals that trigger breathing and heart problems.
The components used to create flavourings such as vanilla, berry and cinnamon mix with other solvents to form a dangerous combination
Vaping has been hailed as less harmful than smoking tobacco, but just how safe it is has been a matter of debate for experts.
About 3.6 million UK adults have used e-cigarettes in the past decade and the annual vaping market in Britain is worth £2.5 billion.
The manufacturers of e-cigarettes, which work by heating up a liquid that usually contains nicotine, propylene glycol and flavourings, say vaping is much less harmful than smoking tobacco.
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