Is pipe smoking as dangerous as cigarettes?

Yes: In different ways than cigarette smoking. Cigarettes can cause oral, pharyngeal or lung cancer, since the smoke is inhaled into the lungs. Pipe smokers typically don't inhale into the lungs, just the mouth, so they are at risk for oral cancer. Any tobacco product puts the user at increased risk for cancer.

Pipe or cigarette.: The choice essentially boils down to where you want your cancer to be some day. Yes, it's just as dangerous and just as ill-advised.