Researchers are pleased with the early results of a study that is evaluating the use of a nicotine vaccine. It has been reported that most smokers take up to 7 tries before finally being able to become smoke-free. This means that people are stopping smoking and then relapsing quite frequently. Either the stresses of life become too much to handle, the cravings weren't well planned for, they underestimated their nicotine addiction, or something caused the smoker to start back up again. This is called recidivism. This is often the biggest obstacle in the science of smoking cessation. How do we keep the smoker off the nicotine? How do we keep them coming back for more stop smoking help?
Currently smoking cessation rates among stop smoking aids are very small. In fact, Chantix reported the highest quit rates at around 20% a few years ago. But with the potential behavioral side-effects, few are willing to give it a try. The next stop smoking aid has only around an 8-10% success rate. These too have side effects and can be costly in the eyes of the smoker. Support groups have remarkable success, but are seldom used because of the time commitment and social stigma associated with "counseling". Many do not participate despite the rather impressive cessation rates (in excess of that seen with Chantix).
This is why the idea of a smoking vaccination seems so attractive. First of all, the vaccine is design to bind with the nicotine molecule, thus making it too large to cross blood-brain barrier. This prevents the smoker from receiving that "rush" associated with nicotine addiction. This mechanism of use has several potential advantages.
One is the acceptance of vaccinations in our society. People seldom have any problem getting a shot. Second, there is no program to enroll in, no daily ritual to perform like chewing gum or replacing a patch. There are also no psycho-behavioral abnormalities reported thus far. The greatest advantage could be that the antibodies remain active in the bloodstream for several months. This could address the high relapse rate that occurs with other smoking cessation aids. But, the studies still only show a success rate in the middle teens. However, this is double the typical success rate without the potential ominous side-effects.
The smoking vaccine has the potential to have the greatest impact on health in years. It would have wide acceptance with no downside stigma and it addresses the high rate of recidivism. This is definitely something to watch in the coming months and years.
