that's true, and the numbers would be higher if you took out accidental death.
as i said, i don't know for sure what i'd do if i got it, but i can understand those who keep smoking, it's not easy to quit.
and i believe only 1/3rd of smokers get lung cancer.
and you can justify not quitting as you won't recover from cancer anyway.
even if chemo works, the chances of it coming back are so high and your whole rest of your life will be beset with worries about it coming back.
the thing is most of those people who get it late in life have already had full lives; it's easier for them to accept it, especially if they passed on their genes.