Letter Menthol Cigarettes and Mortality: Keeping Focus on the Public Health Standard

To the Editor: In a previous issue of Nicotine & Tobacco Research, Rostron (2012) reported lower lung cancer mortality risk among men-thol smokers compared with nonmenthol smokers at ages 50 and above. This is an interesting observation requiring fur-ther examination and integration with the rest of the evidence including the higher rates of lung cancer among Black males (but not females). Below, we highlight several additional points to consider when interpreting the findings of this study. We believe these points give pause for a more cautious interpreta-tion of the results of this analysis. First, this is a cross-sectional study conducted in 1987 linked to the National Death Index. Cigarette use was measured at base-line only, and cumulative exposure to cigarette smoking, but not specific brands, was assessed at that time. This is a limitation of th