Cigarette smoking is a well-known risk factor for perioperative surgery-related complications; however, steady progress in perioperative management has been made year by year. This study investigated the influence of cigarette smoking on postoperative complications in patients with lung cancer over the last three years in our institution. Clinical records of 194 patients who had undergone a pulmonary resection for lung cancer were retrospectively reviewed. The clinico-pathological findings and postoperative complications were compared among patients with smoking history. Smokers, including a higher number of men, had more preoperative respiratory complications, a lower FEV(1)/FVC, larger tumors, and included more squamous cell carcinoma in comparison to non-smokers. A univariate analysis revealed that sex, age and smoking history were independent risk factors in the postoperative complications; however, a multivariate analysis revealed that those factors including smoking history were not independent. In a subgroup of smokers subclassified by their smoking status or smoking index, there were no significant differences in postoperative complications. Over the recent three years of this study, smoking history was not a significant risk factor in postoperative complications. Especially in smokers, smoking status or smoking index was not a significant risk factor in postoperative complications, too.