Tobacco: The smoking gun
The nicotine in tobacco products poses a significant danger of structural and chemical changes in developing brains that can make teens more vulnerable to alcohol and other drug addiction and to mental illness, according to Tobacco: The Smoking Gun, a new white paper released by The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University and commissioned by The Citizens’ Commission to Protect the Truth, a group of all former U.S. Secretaries of Health, Education, and Welfare and of Health and Human Services, all former U.S. Surgeons General, and all former Directors of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Download the report here.

Big tobacco has a big influence in California: Effective anti-smoking advertising, research, and legislation all blunted by campaign contributions and lawsuits
This report from the Center for Tobacco Control Research and Education at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) School of Medicine entitled “Tobacco Control in California 2003-2007: Missed Opportunities” describes the hold that tobacco companies have had on the state’s legislation and tobacco control programs. The report details tobacco companies’ campaign contributions, a recent stall in the decline of cigarette smoking because of thwarted legislative efforts, and Governor Schwarzenegger’s tobacco-control veto record. Read a summary of the report here.

Cigarette smoking among adults—United States, 2006
The CDC has issued its report on smoking trends in the United States for 2006 with information from its 2006 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) to help assess progress on its national goal of reducing smokers to less than 12% of the population. Approximately 20.8% of adult Americans were current cigarette smokers in 2006, a rate that has remained stable since 2004. Of the current smokers, 44.2% had attempted to quit in the past year. Nearly half of the respondents who reported having emphysema or chronic bronchitis were current smokers. Disparities in smoking rates were observed between ethnic groups and education levels.  Click here to read the article in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

Lung Cancer Alliance launches lung cancer awareness month with third annual report card on lung cancer
This report was released in November at the start of Lung Cancer Awareness Month to policy makers, medical professionals, and cancer organizations. The report, which rates progress on various factors needed to eradicate lung cancer such as research and prevention, gives the federal government a failing grade for the third year in a row. Read more about the report card here.

A midpoint assessment of the American Cancer Society Challenge goal to decrease cancer incidence by 25% between 1992 and 2015
This report examines cancer incidence from 1992 to 2004 to assess progress on the American Cancer Society’s goal, and found that progress is half of what was expected in order to reach the year 2015 goal for cancer reduction. Cancer registries that document cancer incidence in a sample of approximately 10% of the U.S. population were studied. Overall, prevalence decreased for many types of cancer, but the decrease has slowed in more recent years. The report cites smoking cessation programs as a possible reason for the decline in cancer deaths among those over 65.  Click here to read the paper.

Smokers Cost Medicaid System Nearly $10 Billion
A new report from the Legacy Foundation finds that 10 billion dollars could be saved over the next five years if Medicaid beneficiaries who smoke, quit. The report Saving Lives, Saving Money II presents the results of the powerful new analysis of the costs of smoking.  To download the report, click here.

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