It's a given Chiang Mai's air quality was a contributing factor in the young man's lung cancer. Statistically, a smoker is 20 times more likely to develop the disease than a non-smoker.
Smoke is smoke, it doesn't matter whether it comes from a cigarette, or burning rice and corn fields.
I am wondering if the Thai MOPH is sitting on lung disease data, the air quality issue seems to fly under the radar.
RIP a brave young man, taken too early.