Research

Nicotine and cocaine leave similar mark on brain after first contact
According to a new study published in The Journal of Neuroscience, one 15-minute exposure to nicotine causes a long-term increase in the excitability of neurons involved in reward, similar to the effects of cocaine. Researchers examined electrical activity of dopamine neurons in sections of rat brains that had been exposed to nicotine, testing for synaptic plasticity and the involvement of different neurotransmitter receptors. They found that changes in the brain associated with nicotine exposure were contingent not just on nicotine receptors, but also the D5 dopamine receptor, which has previously been implicated in the drug action of cocaine. The overlap in the effects on the brain’s reward system may help explain the addictive nature of nicotine and cocaine, as well as provide potential future targets for preventing or treating addiction. Click here to read more, or click here to read the study abstract.

Cigarette, cigar and pipe smoking, passive smoke exposure, and risk of pancreatic cancer: a population-based study in the San Francisco Bay Area
A new case-control study published in BMC Cancer indicates that cigarette smoking is associated with an increased risk of pancreatic cancer, but those who have quit for at least ten years no longer experience an increased risk. Researchers conducted interviews to gain tobacco use exposure data for 532 individuals with pancreatic cancer and 1701 healthy controls. Results illustrated that the current smokers were at a 1.9-fold increased risk of developing pancreatic cancer compared to nonsmokers. Smokers who had quit for ten years or more were not at an increased risk of developing pancreatic cancer compared to those who had never smoked. The findings suggest that pancreatic cancer incidence may decrease with declining smoking rates. Read more here.

Smokers have slimmer odds of surviving colon cancer
Smoking is known to increase the odds of developing colon cancer, and new research indicates that smokers are also 30% more likely to die if they develop the disease compared to nonsmokers. The Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results cancer registry was used to identify colorectal cancer patients in thirteen counties in Washington State. The patients were interviewed about their smoking history and alcohol consumption, and then the researchers linked the registry data to the National Death Index to track mortality. The data revealed that both colorectal cancer mortality and overall mortality risk were significantly higher among smokers, compared to never-smokers. Read more here, or click here to read the abstract of the research in Cancer.

top

Back to Table of Contents