Muller DC, et al. - In this nested case-control study, researchers performed a comprehensive analysis of prospectively measured circulating high-sensitivity C reactive protein (hsCRP) concentration and overall lung cancer risk, by smoking status (never, former, and current) and histological sub-type. For this purpose, they evaluated 5,299 study participants with incident lung cancer and individually incidence density matched control individuals in the setting of 20 population-based cohort studies in Asia, Europe, Australia, and the United States. They noted an overall higher risk of lung cancer among former and current smokers with higher circulating hsCRP concentrations. No association of circulating hsCRP concentration with the risk of lung adenocarcinoma was evident. According to findings, circulating hsCRP concentration may have clinical utility as a prediagnostic marker of lung cancer rather than a causal risk factor.