Importance The utility of buccal cells as an epithelial source tissue for epigenome-wide
association studies (EWASs) remains to be demonstrated. Given the direct exposure of
buccal cells to potent carcinogens such as smoke, epigenetic changes in these cells may
provide insights into the development of smoke-related cancers. Objective To perform an
EWAS in buccal and blood cells to assess the relative effect of smoking on the DNA
methylation (DNAme) patterns in these cell types and to test whether these DNAme changes …