Internet and computer-based Quit Smoking programs are a cost-effective alternative to expensive phone lines and counseling services for smokers who want to kick the habit, according to a new study.

Melbourne, Australia —31 March, 2008— Research has shown that varenicline tartrate – a novel new drug specifically developed for smoking cessation – allows smokers to abstain from cigarettes significantly longer and more effectively than smokers using a placebo.

Nicotine gum has been in use for over 20 years to help smokers quit abruptly yet close to two-thirds of smokers report that they would prefer to quit gradually. Researchers from the University of Pittsburgh and GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare have now found that smokers who are trying to quit gradually can also be helped by nicotine gum.

Just seeing someone smoke can trigger smokers to abandon their nascent efforts to kick the habit, according to new research conducted at Duke University Medical Center.

As Americans prepare for a day without cigarettes and tobacco products as part of the American Cancer Society Great American Smokeout (R) (November 20), new research gives them more reasons to extend that break to a lifetime, according to the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Foundation (AAO-HNSF).

Physicians and other health-care providers may advise their patients to quit smoking, but few providers have the adequate training to follow their patients through the cessation process.

Hospital-sponsored stop-smoking programs for inpatients that include follow-up counseling for longer than one month significantly improve patients' ability to stay smoke-free. An analysis of clinical trials of programs offered at hospitals around the world finds that efforts featuring long-term support can increase participant's chances of success by 65 percent.

Hospital-based smoking cessation programs, along with referrals to cardiac rehabilitation, appear to be associated with increased rates of quitting smoking following heart attack, according to a report in the Oct. 13, 2008, issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

Kicking the habit may soon become easier for the nation’s 45 million smokers. For the first time, researchers have identified patterns of genes that appear to influence how well individuals respond to specific smoking cessation treatments.

A new study from the American Cancer Society finds black and Hispanic smokers are less likely than whites to receive and use smoking cessation advice and aids. The study, published in the May issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, also finds men and those without a usual source of medical care were less likely to be screened for tobacco use and receive advice to quit.

OHSU Smoking Cessation Center researchers outline key steps for developing and implementing clinic-based systems to provide smoking cessation treatment tailored to smokers with respiratory disorders

Increasing the level of Quitline smoking cessation services and offering free nicotine patches are a successful and cost-effective way to reduce smoking rates, according to two new studies in the December issue of Tobacco Control, a peer-reviewed publication of the British Medical Journal.