Category Archives: quit smoking

quit smoking

UM Tobacco Ban Yields Only 3 Referrals Since Becoming Mandatory Jan 1

HomeNewsUM Tobacco Ban Yields Only 3 Referrals Since Becoming Mandatory Jan 1

February 13, 2012   The University of Maine’s Tobacco-Free Campus Initiative has been a mandatory policy since the beginning of the semester. But since Jan. 1, the ban has caused only three referrals for cigarette use, according to David Fiacco, director of Community Standards, Rights and Responsibilities.

“We think it’s going very well,” said Dean of Students Robert Dana. “There’s been another substantial decline in smoking-related behaviors.” The updated policy introduced stricter enforcement and mandatory compliance. Dana said more students and faculty have been asking for help quitting tobacco products. “That was sort of the plan from the public health perspective,” Dana said. “We expected people probably would be fully invested in the change process. “We hoped that people would come forward if they needed some help,” he continued. “It seems to be working.”

For More Information:
http://mainecampus.com/2012/02/13/um-tobacco-ban-yields-only-3-referrals-since-becoming-mandatory-jan-1/

Feb 17, 2012
Why All Hospital Campuses Should be Smoke-Free
Read the full story Feb 17, 2012
Tobacco Added in to the Cocktail Mix
Read the full story Feb 16, 2012
Smokeless Tobacco May Have Led to Outfielder Tony Gwynn’s Cancer
Read the full story Feb 16, 2012
Electronic Cigarette Explodes in Man’s Mouth
Read the full story

Complete the form below to subscribe to the ActionToQuit listserv. Join the conversation about tobacco control policy and receive weekly updates.

Subscribe to the RSS feed to get notification of key dates.

View the original article here

quit smoking

Smokeless Tobacco May Have Led to Outfielder Tony Gwynn’s Cancer

HomeNewsSmokeless Tobacco May Have Led to Outfielder Tony Gwynn’s Cancer

February 16, 2012   In 20 seasons, Tony Gwynn proved to be one of the most prolific hitters in baseball. Now he steps up to a much more formidable opponent—cancer. Gwynn has had four procedures to remove a cancerous tumor from the right side of his mouth. The Hall of Fame outfielder strongly believes that his tumors resulted from a lengthy history of smokeless tobacco use. Gwynn reportedly started while playing rookie ball to calm his nerves, but soon he became addicted. He claims to have used one and a half cans each day. Recently, to prohibit young baseball fans from starting to use tobacco, Major League Baseball and the players union agreed that players wouldn’t carry smokeless tobacco in their pockets when fans are present at the ballparks or use it during interviews or team functions. Many health organizations and several congressmen have pushed for a full ban.

For More Information:
http://www.postandcourier.com/news/2012/feb/16/smokeless-tobacco-may-have-led-to-gwynns-cancer/

Feb 17, 2012
Why All Hospital Campuses Should be Smoke-Free
Read the full story Feb 17, 2012
Tobacco Added in to the Cocktail Mix
Read the full story Feb 16, 2012
Smokeless Tobacco May Have Led to Outfielder Tony Gwynn’s Cancer
Read the full story Feb 16, 2012
Electronic Cigarette Explodes in Man’s Mouth
Read the full story

Complete the form below to subscribe to the ActionToQuit listserv. Join the conversation about tobacco control policy and receive weekly updates.

Subscribe to the RSS feed to get notification of key dates.

View the original article here

quit smoking

After A Cancer Diagnosis, Many People Continue To Smoke

Main Category: Smoking / Quit Smoking
Also Included In: Lung Cancer;  Colorectal Cancer
Article Date: 24 Jan 2012 – 4:00 PST

email icon email to a friend   printer icon printer friendly   write icon opinions  

4 starsnot yet rated
A new analysis has found that a substantial number of lung and colorectal cancer patients continue to smoke after being diagnosed. Published early online in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society, the study provides valuable information on which cancer patients might need help to quit smoking.

When a patient receives a cancer diagnosis, the main focus is to treat the disease. But stopping smoking after a cancer diagnosis is also important because continuing to smoke can negatively affect patients’ responses to treatments, their subsequent cancer risk, and, potentially, their survival. Elyse R. Park, PhD, MPH, of the Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School in Boston, led a team that looked to see how many patients quit smoking around the time of a cancer diagnosis, and which smokers were most likely to quit.

The investigators determined smoking rates around the time of diagnosis and five months after diagnosis in 5,338 lung and colorectal cancer patients. At diagnosis, 39 percent of lung cancer patients and 14 percent of colorectal cancer patients were smoking; five months later, 14 percent of lung cancer patients and 9 percent of colorectal cancer patients were still smoking. These results indicate that a substantial minority of cancer patients continue to smoke after being diagnosed. Also, although lung cancer patients have higher rates of smoking at diagnosis and following diagnosis, colorectal cancer patients are less likely to quit smoking following diagnosis.

Factors and characteristics that predicted continued smoking differed by cancer type. Lung cancer patients who continued smoking tended to have Medicare or other public health insurance, have a lower body mass index, have low emotional support, not have received chemotherapy, not have had surgery, have had prior heart disease, and have smoked a high number of cigarettes per day at some point during their lives. Colorectal cancer patients who continued to smoke tended to be male, have completed less education, be uninsured, not have had surgery, and have once smoked a high number of cigarettes per day.

“These findings can help cancer clinicians identify patients who are at risk for smoking and guide tobacco counseling treatment development for cancer patients,” said Dr. Park.

In an accompanying editorial, Carolyn Dressler, MD, of the Arkansas Department of Health in Little Rock, noted that Dr. Park’s research highlights the critical importance of physicians and other caretakers to address tobacco cessation, particularly at the time of diagnosis. “Most clinicians acknowledge the importance of addressing tobacco cessation in their patients; however, few do it,” she wrote. “We know enough now to implement effective cessation programs to identify and help cancer patients quit at the time of diagnosis and support them to prevent relapse. By doing so, we maximize patients’ response to therapy, their quality of life, and their longevity.”

Article adapted by Medical News Today from original press release. Click ‘references’ tab above for source.
Visit our smoking / quit smoking section for the latest news on this subject. Article: “A snapshot of smokers following lung and colorectal cancer diagnosis.” Elyse Park, Sandra Japuntich, Nancy A. Rigotti, Lara Traeger, Yulei He, Robert Wallace, Jennifer Malin, Jennifer C. Pandiscio, and Nancy L. Keating. CANCER; Published Online: January 23, 2012 (DOI: 10.1002/cncr.26545).
Editorial: “Oncologists Should Intervene.” Carolyn M. Dresler. CANCER; Published Online: January 23, 2012 (DOI: 10.1002/cncr.26538).
Wiley-Blackwell Please use one of the following formats to cite this article in your essay, paper or report:

MLA

Wiley-Blackwell. “After A Cancer Diagnosis, Many People Continue To Smoke.” Medical News Today. MediLexicon, Intl., 24 Jan. 2012. Web.
14 Feb. 2012. APA

Please note: If no author information is provided, the source is cited instead.


Please note that we publish your name, but we do not publish your email address. It is only used to let you know when your message is published. We do not use it for any other purpose. Please see our privacy policy for more information.

If you write about specific medications or operations, please do not name health care professionals by name.

All opinions are moderated before being included (to stop spam)

Contact Our News Editors

For any corrections of factual information, or to contact the editors please use our feedback form.

Please send any medical news or health news press releases to:

Note: Any medical information published on this website is not intended as a substitute for informed medical advice and you should not take any action before consulting with a health care professional. For more information, please read our terms and conditions.


View the original article here

quit smoking

New Book Examines Impact of the U.S. Tobacco Industry

HomeNewsNew Book Examines Impact of the U.S. Tobacco Industry

February 14, 2012   Anthropologist Peter Benson, PhD, released a new book titled “Tobacco Capitalism” that examines the impact of tobacco production in the United States on farmers, workers, and the public. He explains that the tobacco industry is increasingly purchasing their tobacco leaves from developing countries, pressuring American farmers to lower their prices to compete with overseas producers.  Many American farmers are hiring undocumented migrant farm workers to compete economically, putting them at the center of contentious political debates about illegal immigration. These migrant workers live in “labor camps” with poor living conditions, and have little access to resources like health care, legal services, and employment benefits. Benson also discusses tobacco industry marketing strategies, which have undergone what he calls a “corporate social responsibility makeover,” shifting responsibility from the companies (for making a harmful product) to consumers (for supposedly choosing it) and claiming to create “safer” tobacco products.

For More Information:
http://www.healthnewsdigest.com/news/Book_Review_440/New_Book_Examines_Impact_of_U_S_Tobacco_Industry_printer.shtml

Feb 14, 2012
New Book Examines Impact of the U.S. Tobacco Industry
Read the full story Feb 14, 2012
Smoke-Free Laws Lead to Less Smoking At Home
Read the full story Feb 13, 2012
UM Tobacco Ban Yields Only 3 Referrals Since Becoming Mandatory Jan. 1
Read the full story Feb 13, 2012
Largest Addiction Treatment Facility in Central Texas Says, ‘No smoking’
Read the full story

Complete the form below to subscribe to the ActionToQuit listserv. Join the conversation about tobacco control policy and receive weekly updates.

Subscribe to the RSS feed to get notification of key dates.

View the original article here

quit smoking

Largest Addiction Treatment Facility in Central Texas Says, ‘No smoking’

HomeNewsLargest Addiction Treatment Facility in Central Texas Says, ‘No smoking’

February 13, 2012   The image of chain-smoking patients in treatment for drug addiction is no myth, but an Austin nonprofit hopes to make it history. Austin Recovery, the largest inpatient addiction treatment center in Central Texas and one of the biggest in the state, is going smoke-free April 30.

“When you’re in residential treatment, what better time to address your other deadly addiction, which is tobacco use?” said Jonathan Ross , president and CEO of Austin Recovery. The nonprofit treats 3,200 clients annually and has three residential campuses. Ross and his staff hope to dispel the old-school notion that it’s too hard to get people to quit smoking when they are trying to kick a drug or alcohol problem. “Not only are you continuing an addictive behavior and putting yourself at risk of relapse, you’re also killing yourself,” he said.

For More Information:
http://www.statesman.com/news/local/largest-addiction-treatment-facility-in-central-texas-says-2164142.html

Feb 14, 2012
New Book Examines Impact of the U.S. Tobacco Industry
Read the full story Feb 14, 2012
Smoke-Free Laws Lead to Less Smoking At Home
Read the full story Feb 13, 2012
UM Tobacco Ban Yields Only 3 Referrals Since Becoming Mandatory Jan. 1
Read the full story Feb 13, 2012
Largest Addiction Treatment Facility in Central Texas Says, ‘No smoking’
Read the full story

Complete the form below to subscribe to the ActionToQuit listserv. Join the conversation about tobacco control policy and receive weekly updates.

Subscribe to the RSS feed to get notification of key dates.

View the original article here

quit smoking

Comparing Alcohol Use And Other Disorders Between The United States And South Korea

Main Category: Alcohol / Addiction / Illegal Drugs
Also Included In: Depression;  Smoking / Quit Smoking
Article Date: 18 Jan 2012 – 0:00 PST

email icon email to a friend   printer icon printer friendly   write icon opinions  

4 starsnot yet rated
Hazardous alcohol use and depression are among the 10 leading causes of disability and premature death worldwide, according to the World Health Organization. Many low- to middle-income countries have begun to see a steady increase in alcohol use and have entered the early stages of a tobacco epidemic. A study of alcohol use disorders (AUDs), nicotine dependence (ND), and mood and anxiety disorders in the United States and South Korea has found that while AUDs are substantially more common among Americans than South Koreans, alcohol-dependent Americans are significantly more likely to seek treatment.

Results will be published in the April 2012 issue of Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research and are currently available at Early View.

“People in low to middle-income countries are experiencing a lot of stress due to rapid industrialization and urbanization and are therefore likely to use substances more to relieve their stress,” explained Hae Kook Lee, associate professor at the Catholic University of Korea and corresponding author for the study. “Furthermore, westernization might weaken the taboo for female drinking, especially in Eastern countries.”

“Cross-cultural epidemiologic studies like this one are extremely valuable,” added Howard B. Moss, associate director for clinical and translational research at NIAAA. “Despite over thirty years of research emphasizing the biopsychosocial nature of a wide variety of mental disorders, we see an over-emphasis of the neurobiological underpinnings of addictive disorders. Of course alcohol and other drugs of abuse do significantly impact upon brain processes through mechanisms of reward, plasticity, and adaptation leading from use, intoxication, and tolerance to physical dependence. However, the human process of addiction is much more complex than dopamine release in the reward pathways of the brain or the binding occupancy of the endogenous opiate receptors. Cross-cultural studies like this one reveal that we should also appreciate that the personal distress felt by addicted patients, and their frequently challenging illness behaviors, are manifestations of complex psychological processes that may be culturally bound and exist within a sociocultural paradigm. Thus, research like this reminds the scientific community of the complexity of alcoholism and comorbid conditions.”

Lee and his colleagues used nationally representative samples of the U.S. and South Korean general populations to compare rates of AUDs, ND, and mood and anxiety disorders between the two countries. Study authors also examined the rates and comorbidity patterns among individuals with AUDs who sought treatment in the preceding 12 months.

“Results showed that the prevalence of AUDs among Americans was substantially greater than among South Koreans,” said Lee. More specifically, the 12-month prevalences of AUDs, ND, and any mood and any anxiety disorders were 9.7, 14.4, 9.5 and 11.9 percent among Americans, compared to 7.1, 6.6, 2.0, and 5.2 percent among South Koreans. “The differences in overall prevalence of AUD rates between the two countries was largely due to prevalence among females, that is, drinking by women has historically been tempered by Confucian culture in Korea even though it is increasing rapidly now.”

“America has a longer cultural history with alcohol than do South Koreans,” added Moss. “At the time of the colonization of North America, most European colonists came from countries with strong cultural ties to regular and heavy alcohol consumption. While the Korean people historically used alcohol, its use was limited during the colonial period. Alcohol use was then stimulated in 1986 by a government policy to identify and support culturally important Korean alcoholic beverages. While Prohibition, in theory, limited American access to legal drinking for 13 years, Americans did not have a prolonged abstinence period that shifted cultural norms as occurred in Korea.”

“Even though we found a greater prevalence of alcoholism, mood and anxiety disorders among Americans in comparison to South Koreans,” said Lee, “alcohol-dependent Americans were four times more likely to seek treatment compared to their Korean counterparts, which may indicate the influence of a social stigma toward substance-abuse or mental-health problems despite national health insurance in Korea.”

While Moss agreed that it is clear that South Koreans are less likely to seek treatment for their alcohol problems than Americans, he questioned that this is because of stigma and saving face. “Americans with alcohol dependence and psychiatric comorbidity are more likely to seek treatment than those with alcohol dependence alone,” he observed. “I think seeking treatment has more to do with the degree of discomfort and suffering experienced by the individual, perhaps combined with issues of stigma and face-saving.”

Another finding, comorbidity of mood and anxiety disorders and alcohol use disorders, is the norm rather than the exception, added Lee. “These patterns were similar among American and Korean alcoholics,” he said. “Further, socio-cultural factors might also affect treatment seeking and rates of comorbidity as the higher social stigma of psychiatric treatment might make the patients with mood disorders drink more to relieve their symptoms.”

However, added Moss, the patterns of comorbid psychiatric disorders were different among Korean smokers versus American smokers as American smokers displayed more comorbid mood and anxiety disorders than did Korean smokers.

“Fundamentally,” said Moss, “I think this study forces us to think more about cultural and environmental influences on the etiology of alcohol dependence in conjunction with the neurobiology and genetics of addiction. This study reminds us that neither biological determinism nor social determinism is the whole story. Human behavior is extremely complex, and reductionism of any sort is, more often than not, incorrect.”

Article adapted by Medical News Today from original press release. Click ‘references’ tab above for source.
Visit our alcohol / addiction / illegal drugs section for the latest news on this subject. Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research (ACER) is the official journal of the Research Society on Alcoholism and the International Society for Biomedical Research on Alcoholism. Co-authors of the ACER paper, “Alcohol Use Disorders, Nicotine Dependence and Co-Occurring Mood and Anxiety Disorders in the United States and South Korea: A Cross-National Comparison,” were: S. Patricia Chou, Deborah A. Dawson, and Bridget F. Grant of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism; Maeng Je Cho of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science in the Institute of Behavioral Medicine at Seoul National University; and Jong-Ik Park of the Department of Psychiatry at Kangwon National University College of Medicine in Korea. This release is supported by the Addiction Technology Transfer Center Network at http://www.attcnetwork.org/.
The Catholic University of Korea
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)
Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research Please use one of the following formats to cite this article in your essay, paper or report:

MLA

Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research. “Comparing Alcohol Use And Other Disorders Between The United States And South Korea.” Medical News Today. MediLexicon, Intl., 18 Jan. 2012. Web.
14 Feb. 2012. APA

Please note: If no author information is provided, the source is cited instead.


Please note that we publish your name, but we do not publish your email address. It is only used to let you know when your message is published. We do not use it for any other purpose. Please see our privacy policy for more information.

If you write about specific medications or operations, please do not name health care professionals by name.

All opinions are moderated before being included (to stop spam)

Contact Our News Editors

For any corrections of factual information, or to contact the editors please use our feedback form.

Please send any medical news or health news press releases to:

Note: Any medical information published on this website is not intended as a substitute for informed medical advice and you should not take any action before consulting with a health care professional. For more information, please read our terms and conditions.


View the original article here

quit smoking

Important Target Playing Role In Tobacco-Related Lung Cancers Discovered By Researchers

Main Category: Lung Cancer
Also Included In: Smoking / Quit Smoking;  Immune System / Vaccines
Article Date: 13 Feb 2012 – 0:00 PST

email icon email to a friend   printer icon printer friendly   write icon opinions  

not yet ratednot yet rated
Researchers at Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Fla., have discovered that the immune response regulator IKBKE (serine/threonine kinase) plays two roles in tobacco-related non-small cell lung cancers. Tobacco carcinogens induce IKBKE and, in turn, IKBKE induces chemotherapy resistance.

The study was published in a recent issue of Oncogene.

“IKBKE is a newly identified oconogene, a gene linked to cancer,” said study lead author Jin Q. Cheng, Ph.D., M.D., who studies genetic alterations and their molecular mechanisms in cancer. “In our study, we demonstrated that IKBKE is a STAT 3 target gene and is induced by tobacco. STAT3 is a signaling and transcription gene that is activated in various types of cancer and is required for cell transformation.”

As a “transcription factor” STAT3 plays a key role in many cellular processes, such as cell growth and programmed cell death, or “apoptosis.”

“It has been well documented that STAT3 is activated by growth factors and environmental carcinogenesis, such as nicotine,” said Cheng. “STAT3 directly binds to the IKBKE promoter and induces IKBKE transcription.”

Tobacco smoke is the strongest documented tumor initiator and promoter in lung cancer. The underlying molecular mechanism is still largely unknown.

“IKBKE is induced by tobacco carcinogens and mediates tobacco action in promoting lung cancer cell survival,” said Cheng. “Armed with this knowledge, interventions targeting the IKBKE pathway could be developed.”

Cheng and his colleagues found that when STAT3 induces IKBKE expression, IKBKE’s expression induces chemotherapy resistance. Conversely, “knocking down” IKBKE sensitizes cells to chemotherapy, suggesting that there is a therapeutic role for targeting IKBKE.

While IKBKE has been found to be “over expressed” in ovarian, breast and prostate cancers, in this study IKBKE has for the first time been associated with non-small cell lung cancer in patients with a history of tobacco use, and particularly by tobacco’s nicotine component. The researchers stated that upon exposure to nicotine, cells express high levels of IKBKE protein. In their study co-expression of STAT3 and IKBKE was “observed in primary non-small cell lung cancer.”

“Current treatments for non-small cell lung cancer include surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy,” explained Cheng. “Advanced patients generally develop chemotherapy and radiotherapy resistance, so there is a great need to understand the molecular mechanism of therapy resistance in order to find ‘targets’ to overcome resistance.”

The discovery that STAT3 appears to regulate IKBKE in response to nicotine induced by tobacco carcinogen may also help develop a strategy for an intervention in non-small cell lung cancer by targeting IKBKE.

Article adapted by Medical News Today from original press release. Click ‘references’ tab above for source.
Visit our lung cancer section for the latest news on this subject. Please use one of the following formats to cite this article in your essay, paper or report:

MLA

H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute. “Important Target Playing Role In Tobacco-Related Lung Cancers Discovered By Researchers.” Medical News Today. MediLexicon, Intl., 13 Feb. 2012. Web.
14 Feb. 2012. APA

Please note: If no author information is provided, the source is cited instead.


Please note that we publish your name, but we do not publish your email address. It is only used to let you know when your message is published. We do not use it for any other purpose. Please see our privacy policy for more information.

If you write about specific medications or operations, please do not name health care professionals by name.

All opinions are moderated before being included (to stop spam)

Contact Our News Editors

For any corrections of factual information, or to contact the editors please use our feedback form.

Please send any medical news or health news press releases to:

Note: Any medical information published on this website is not intended as a substitute for informed medical advice and you should not take any action before consulting with a health care professional. For more information, please read our terms and conditions.


View the original article here

quit smoking

Youths’ Smoking Influenced By Sports Teammates

Main Category: Smoking / Quit Smoking
Also Included In: Pediatrics / Children’s Health
Article Date: 10 Feb 2012 – 0:00 PST

email icon email to a friend   printer icon printer friendly   write icon opinions  

not yet ratednot yet rated
Young people’s choices about using drugs and alcohol are influenced by peers – not only close friends, but also sports teammates. A new study of middle schoolers and their social networks has found that teammates’ smoking plays a big role in youths’ decisions about smoking, but adolescents who take part in a lot of sports smoke less.

The study was conducted at the University of Southern California (USC) and appears in the journal Child Development.

Researchers looked at 1,260 ethnically diverse, urban, middle-class sixth through eighth graders. They asked the students about their own smoking behavior, and they asked them to name friends at school as well as the organized sports they took part in at school. Then, using a social network method they developed, they examined how participation in sports with teammates who smoked affected adolescents’ smoking behavior.

They found that youths were more likely to smoke as they were increasingly exposed to teammates who smoked, and that this tendency may be stronger among girls than boys. But they also found that youths who took part in a greater number of sports were less likely to smoke than those who participated in fewer.

“This result suggests that peers on athletic teams influence the smoking behavior of others even though there might be a protective effect overall of increased participation in athletics on smoking,” according to Kayo Fujimoto, assistant professor of health promotion and behavioral sciences at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, who led the study when she was at USC.

The study has implications for programs aimed at preventing teens from smoking. “Current guidelines recommend the use of peer leaders selected within the class to implement such programs,” Fujimoto points out. “The findings of this study suggest that peer-led interactive programs should be expanded to include sports teams as well.”

Article adapted by Medical News Today from original press release. Click ‘references’ tab above for source.
Visit our smoking / quit smoking section for the latest news on this subject. Please use one of the following formats to cite this article in your essay, paper or report:

MLA

Society for Research in Child Development. “Youths’ Smoking Influenced By Sports Teammates.” Medical News Today. MediLexicon, Intl., 10 Feb. 2012. Web.
14 Feb. 2012. APA

Please note: If no author information is provided, the source is cited instead.


Please note that we publish your name, but we do not publish your email address. It is only used to let you know when your message is published. We do not use it for any other purpose. Please see our privacy policy for more information.

If you write about specific medications or operations, please do not name health care professionals by name.

All opinions are moderated before being included (to stop spam)

Contact Our News Editors

For any corrections of factual information, or to contact the editors please use our feedback form.

Please send any medical news or health news press releases to:

Note: Any medical information published on this website is not intended as a substitute for informed medical advice and you should not take any action before consulting with a health care professional. For more information, please read our terms and conditions.


View the original article here

quit smoking

Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual And Transgendered Adults Have Twice The Level Of Smoking And Half The Level Of Plans To Quit

Main Category: Smoking / Quit Smoking
Also Included In: Public Health
Article Date: 10 Feb 2012 – 0:00 PST

email icon email to a friend   printer icon printer friendly   write icon opinions  

not yet ratednot yet rated
Gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered Coloradans who smoke are not thinking about quitting or getting ready to quit, and a quarter are uncomfortable approaching their doctors for help, report University of Colorado Cancer Center researchers in a recent article published in Nicotine & Tobacco Research.

These and other findings from the study may help identify new approaches to encourage GLBT smokers to quit.

“Among most smoking populations, we almost always find 20 percent getting ready to quit and another 40 percent are thinking about quitting,” says Arnold Levinson, PhD, MJ, investigator at the CU Cancer Center and the paper’s senior author. “But the rates from our study were half of what we expected.”

For more than 70 percent of the GLBT smokers who were surveyed in Colorado, quitting was not on their agenda. GLBT adults are roughly twice as likely as heterosexual adults to smoke cigarettes. And little research has been done to determine which smoking cessation methods the group might prefer.

The GLBT Community Center of Colorado and other GLBT organizations across Colorado approached Levinson to create the survey of 1,633 Colorado GLBT smokers to see if they were less likely than other smokers to use “proven” cessation methods such as nicotine replacement therapy or telephone counseling.

Prior to the study, advocates thought GLBT smokers wouldn’t use smoking cessation strategies that didn’t take sexual orientation into account. But the surveys, collected at more than 120 GLBT-identified venues in Colorado, showed that GLBT smokers generally use the same strategies that other smokers use.

“More than a quarter of the GBLT smokers we surveyed had used proven methods to try to quit in the past, which is similar to what other populations report,” says Levinson, who is also an associate professor at the Colorado School of Public Health. “There was a minority, though, who wanted programs offering GLBT-identified cessation counselors and advice based on GLBT identity.

“This diversity of preferences makes the GLBT smoker population just like any other smoker population – a group of individuals with varying needs and preferences for cessation strategies.”

In contrast to other smoking populations however, more than 25 percent of respondents were uncomfortable asking their doctor for smoking cessation advice, which is one of four factors significantly associated with preparing to quit. Other factors include daily smoking, previous nicotine replacement therapy use and a smoke-free home rule.

Last month, the One Colorado Education Fund found similar widespread physician distrust among GLBT adults in a report titled Invisible: The State of GLBT Health in Colorado.

Taken together, these findings suggest that public health professionals have an opportunity to develop nonsmoking promotion campaigns in non-clinical settings. For example, a majority of survey respondents said they frequent GLBT bars and events and read GLBT publications. Additionally, promoting smoke-free homes could make a significant impact.

“Only half of our survey respondents had a smoke-free home,” Levinson says. “Since a smoker who lives in a smoke-free household is more likely to try quitting, we need to encourage more GLBT households to adopt this policy.”

“Before we worry too much about how to help GLBT smokers quit, we need public health campaigns to get the GLBT smoker population thinking about quitting,” he says.

Article adapted by Medical News Today from original press release. Click ‘references’ tab above for source.
Visit our smoking / quit smoking section for the latest news on this subject. Please use one of the following formats to cite this article in your essay, paper or report:

MLA

University of Colorado Denver. “Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual And Transgendered Adults Have Twice The Level Of Smoking And Half The Level Of Plans To Quit.” Medical News Today. MediLexicon, Intl., 10 Feb. 2012. Web.
14 Feb. 2012. APA
University of Colorado Denver. (2012, February 10). “Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual And Transgendered Adults Have Twice The Level Of Smoking And Half The Level Of Plans To Quit.” Medical News Today. Retrieved from
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/241360.php.

Please note: If no author information is provided, the source is cited instead.


Please note that we publish your name, but we do not publish your email address. It is only used to let you know when your message is published. We do not use it for any other purpose. Please see our privacy policy for more information.

If you write about specific medications or operations, please do not name health care professionals by name.

All opinions are moderated before being included (to stop spam)

Contact Our News Editors

For any corrections of factual information, or to contact the editors please use our feedback form.

Please send any medical news or health news press releases to:

Note: Any medical information published on this website is not intended as a substitute for informed medical advice and you should not take any action before consulting with a health care professional. For more information, please read our terms and conditions.


View the original article here

quit smoking

Erlotinib Dose-Adjusted For Smoking Status Effective As First Treatment For Head And Neck Cancer

Main Category: Cancer / Oncology
Also Included In: Ear, Nose and Throat;  Smoking / Quit Smoking
Article Date: 27 Jan 2012 – 4:00 PST

email icon email to a friend   printer icon printer friendly   write icon opinions  

not yet ratednot yet rated
Head and neck cancers respond well to the anti-cancer drug erlotinib when it is administered before surgery and a stronger dose is given to patients who smoke, according to a study presented at the Multidisciplinary Head and Neck Cancer Symposium, sponsored by AHNS, ASCO, ASTRO and SNM.

Erlotinib is an oral anti-cancer drug that can slow a tumor’s growth and spread by inhibiting specific growth receptors on the surface of the cancer cells. Early detection of a patient’s response to EGFR inhibitors, such as erlotinib, is critical to personalizing head and neck cancer treatments.

In a first of its kind study in patients with head and neck cancer, researchers sought to determine how well tumors unaffected by other therapies respond to erlotinib, when the drug dose was adjusted according to the patient’s smoking status. It has been recently shown that smokers metabolize the drug faster than nonsmokers.

Nonsmokers received 150 mg per day and smokers received 300 mg per day for at least 14 days before surgery. A FDG-PET scan and neck CT was performed before treatment and at the end of erlotinib administration. In addition, an early FDG-PET was performed after four to six days of treatment.

The results showed that erlotinib is effective as a first line of therapy when the dose is adjusted per smoking status, even when used for a limited duration. Both smokers and nonsmokers tolerated the dose of erlotinib and neither experienced serious adverse effects. The study also showed that the FDG-PET scan taken early can show changes in the standard uptake value and predict a patient’s response to erlotinib.

“We hope our results will motivate clinicians to consider and investigate further the use of erlotinib in patients with head and neck cancer and adjust the dose for smoking status,” Mercedes Porosnicu, MD, lead author of the study and an assistant professor of internal medicine at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in Winston Salem, N.C., said. “We also hope that our study will help better select the patients expected to respond to erlotinib.”

Article adapted by Medical News Today from original press release. Click ‘references’ tab above for source.
Visit our cancer / oncology section for the latest news on this subject. The abstract, “Pilot study to evaluation the effect of erlotinib administered before surgery in operable patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (SCCHN),” was presented as a poster presentation.
American Society for Radiation Oncology Please use one of the following formats to cite this article in your essay, paper or report:

MLA

American Society for Radiation Oncology. “Erlotinib Dose-Adjusted For Smoking Status Effective As First Treatment For Head And Neck Cancer.” Medical News Today. MediLexicon, Intl., 27 Jan. 2012. Web.
14 Feb. 2012. APA

Please note: If no author information is provided, the source is cited instead.


Please note that we publish your name, but we do not publish your email address. It is only used to let you know when your message is published. We do not use it for any other purpose. Please see our privacy policy for more information.

If you write about specific medications or operations, please do not name health care professionals by name.

All opinions are moderated before being included (to stop spam)

Contact Our News Editors

For any corrections of factual information, or to contact the editors please use our feedback form.

Please send any medical news or health news press releases to:

Note: Any medical information published on this website is not intended as a substitute for informed medical advice and you should not take any action before consulting with a health care professional. For more information, please read our terms and conditions.


View the original article here