Tobacco Cessation in Oncology Care

Abstract

Globally, tobacco use is a major modifiable risk factor and leading cause of many forms of cancer and cancer death. Tobacco use contributes to poorer prognosis in cancer care. This article reviews the current state of tobacco cessation treatment in oncology. Effective behavioral and pharmacological treatments exist for tobacco cessation, but are not being widely used in oncology treatment settings. Comprehensive tobacco treatment increases success with quitting smoking and can improve oncological and overall health outcomes. This article describes the components of a model treatment program, which includes automatic referrals for all current tobacco users and recent quitters, motivational interviewing during initial and follow-up contacts, combined behavioral and pharmacological interventions for cessation, and systematic follow-up phone calls for relapse prevention.

Perception of Tobacco Counseling and Cessation among Dental Practitioners

“…Smoked and smokeless tobaccos not only negatively affect oral health but also affect clinical management of oral diseases and conditions [2]. However, it is one of the most modifiable risk factors of disease worldwide [3,4]. Many studies have shown that former smokers have better oral health than current smokers [2,5,6].…”

Smoking cessation prolongs survival in female cancer survivors - the Danish nurse cohort

“…The benefits of smoking cessation in cancer patients have led leading oncology societies to present guidelines stating that smoking habits should be addressed in all patients with cancer and that smoking cessation assistance should be provided for all smokers (Croyle et al, 2019;Kaiser et al, 2018;Price et al, 2019;Toll et al, 2013;Warren et al, 2014). Regardless of these guidelines, evidence of a gap between best and current practice for smoking treatment remains (Croyle et al, 2019;Kaiser et al, 2018;Price et al, 2019;Toll et al, 2013). Our findings endorse; first, the existence of cancer diagnosis as an open window for smoking cessation; and secondly, the potential health gains of implementing routine smoking cessation interventions in cancer care.…”

Leveraging Patient Reported Outcomes Measurement via the Electronic Health Record to Connect Patients with Cancer to Smoking Cessation Treatment

“…Patients with cancer exhibit a high prevalence of distress symptoms, such as fatigue, pain, and anxiety. As for smoking status, these symptoms are often unaddressed during an oncology clinic visit due to similar barriers of time constraint and feelings of inability to adequately address symptoms [15][16][17]. Automated PRO measurement of tobacco use and treatment referral via the electronic health record (EHR) patient portal has not been studied, but may be effective in the oncology setting due to the potential to address barriers to care by enabling systematic administration of screening, automated referral for patients who smoke, repeated offering of treatment to smokers not interested in treatment, and potentially to reduce stigma associated with continued tobacco use after a cancer diagnosis.…”

“…Given the high smoking relapse rate and the unique timeline of greatest relapse risk for patients with cancer, relying on provider assessment may result in a missed smoking lapse or relapse [19,20]. Clinicians vary in their knowledge of evidence-based methods for treating tobacco use and studies have shown that oncologists prefer smoking cessation treatment to be handled by another health care provider [16,21].…”