The biotech company Selecta Biosciences has begun Phase 1 clinical trials on a vaccine SEL-068, a vaccine for smoking cessation and relapse.  SEL-068 is a nanoparticle vaccine designed to induce nicotine antibodies which bind and prevent nicotine from entering the brain, thus halting its addictive effects. These Phase 1 trials are ascending dose, double-blind, and [...]

A new study coming out of the Unites States is reporting  that there is a substantial increased risk of reported depression/suicidal behaviour associated with varenicline (Champix) than with other smoking cessation products.  The study looked at 3,249 reported cases of suicidal/self-injurious behaviour, 90% of which was associated with varenicine, 10% with bupropion, and 3% for  [...]

The Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health (CADTH), whose mandate is to provide decision-makers with evidence, analysis, advice and recommendations so that they may make informed decisions in health care, has released a Rapid Response Report outlining the safety data for electronic cigarettes.  The report concludes that while the evidence and safety data [...]

A recent study in the New England Journal of Medicine reports that cytisine, which has been marketed as a smoking cessation product in former socialist countries for decades, may be an affordable alternative to traditional smoking cessation therapies. In some countries, notably China and India,

The relative risk for bladder cancer from tobacco smoking is higher than reported than previous studies. Researchers found that smokers were 2.2% more likely to develop bladder cancer than non-smokers. Also, 50% of bladder cancer risk in men and women can be attributed to current or past smoking. This may be because of the changing [...]

A new systematic review and meta-analysis published online in the Lancet has shown that women who smoke have a higher chance of developing coronary artery disease than men who smoke. Researchers asserted that women may extract more carcinogens and other toxic agents than men after smoking the same number of cigarettes. Except for those between the ages [...]