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Unlike some other reproductions of classic texts (1) We have not
used OCR(Optical Character Recognition), as this leads to bad
quality books with introduced typos. (2) In books where there are
images such as portraits, maps, sketches etc We have endeavoured to
keep the quality of these images, so they represent accurately the
original artefact. Although occasionally there may be certain
imperfections with these old texts, we feel they deserve to be made
available for future generations to enjoy.
Chemotherapy and You: Support for People With Cancer, National
Institutes of Health Publication 11-7156, focuses on how patients
undergoing chemotherapy can manage their side effects, which
symptoms to watch out for, and how to communicate effectively with
their health care team.
This monograph is the first major update of adolescent smoking
behavior since the groundbreaking reports of the Surgeon General
and the Institute of Medicine in 1994. The authors of this National
Cancer Institute (NCI) Monograph report some progress toward
reducing tobacco use among adolescents but also highlight areas in
which more efforts need to be made. Several chapters examine trends
in adolescent smoking behavior, among all adolescents nationally,
different racial/ethnic groups, and among adolescents residing in
specific States. Other chapters examine these trends using
different national surveys as data sources and different analytical
methods. Finally, the remaining chapters present data on
macro-level policies and factors that influence the initiation and
maintenance of smoking behavior among adolescents. While this
Monograph documents some successes in the reduction of youth
smoking initiation in some States and localities, there remains a
need for an ongoing and exhaustive search for solutions, followed
by committed and successful application to enable the country to
reach its goals in the area of adolescent smoking.
The decline in U.S. smoking prevalence since the publication of the
first Surgeon General's Report in 1964 has been hailed as one of
the greatest public health accomplishments of the past century.
Forty four million Americans-almost half of those who ever
smoked-have quit, and lung cancer death rates have decreased
greatly as a result. As a nation, we've launched wide-reaching
tobacco control programs in worksites, schools, communities, and
all 50 states, and we've witnessed enormous shifts in social norms,
policies, and public attitudes. Growth in clean indoor-air laws and
smoking restrictions have made quit-smoking cues "persistent and
inescapable," and new data shows that tobacco price increases and
mass media cessation campaigns can significantly increase
population quit rates. Over the last three decades, we have
developed effective clinical treatments-psychosocial and
pharmacological-and seen the publication and update of
authoritative practice guidelines recommending evidence based
treatments that, if universally applied, could double our national
annual quit rate in a highly cost-effective way. Prospects for
preventing and treating tobacco use and addiction have never been
better. Yet the papers in this monograph, Those Who Continue to
Smoke: Is Achieving Abstinence Harder and Do We Need to Change Our
Interventions?, raise important questions about what it will take
to build on the successes of the last century and, in particular,
on the last few decades of research and practice. While efforts to
promote tobacco cessation need to be part of a much broader
national tobacco control strategy that emphasizes prevention, it is
clear that the greatest gains in reducing tobacco-caused morbidity,
mortality, and health care costs in the next 30 to 40 years will
come from helping addicted smokers quit. Further declines in adult
smoking are likely to strengthen prevention efforts as well, since
adult smoking is a critical determinant of social norms and a
vector for youth initiation. In this context, the findings
presented in this monograph have important implications for the
next generation of research and practice to help addicted smokers
quit. Specifically, these papers and the findings they present
indicate that helping more smokers quit will require: (1)
developing more powerful treatments that can break through the 25%
to 30% quit-rate ceiling achieved with our best existing
treatments; (2) refining, targeting and tailoring treatments for
high-risk populations; (3) greatly improving surveillance of
quitting patterns and determinants; (4) developing combined
clinical-public health approaches that harness synergies between
evidence based clinical treatments, and macro-level policy and
environmental cessation strategies; and (5) improving the use of
and demand for treatments that work.
In the months immediately after January 1964, when Surgeon General
Luther Terry released the first official Government report on
smoking and health, cigarette consumption in the United States
declined significantly. It was only the second time since the turn
of the century that publicity about the hazards of smoking had
produced a reduction in cigarette use. At that time, many leaders
in the medical and public health arena assumed that, by providing
the public with straightforward information about the dangers of
smoking, they could discourage large numbers of people from using
cigarettes. While the expected change in behavior did occur, it was
far more limited than had been hoped-a reflection of the difficulty
that individuals often experience when they attempt to alter a
complex behavior such as smoking, especially one we now know to be
addictive. The recognition that information alone would not
eliminate tobacco use shifted the focus to strategies directed to
the individual. This focus presumed, erroneously as it turned out,
that the major determinants of smoking behavior were centered
within the individual rather than sociologic in nature. Subsequent
research and natural observation clearly demonstrated that behavior
change correlated with changes occurring in the smoker's social and
economic environment. This recognition has led to the adoption of
public health strategies that now address the smoker's larger
social environment while simultaneously offering programs of
assistance for the individual. This volume provides a summary of
what we have learned over nearly 40 years of the public health
effort against smoking-from the early trial-and-error health
information campaigns of the 1960'sto the NCI's science-based
ASSIST project (the American Stop Smoking Intervention Study for
Cancer Prevention), which began in the fall of 1991. Strategies To
Control Tobacco Use in the United States: A Blueprint for Public
Health Action in the 1990's presents a historical accounting of
these efforts as well as the reasons why comprehensive smoking
control strategies are now needed to address the smoker's total
environment and reduce smoking prevalence significantly over the
next decade.
Just as the American Stop Smoking Intervention Study for Cancer
Prevention (ASSIST) was a major shift in the National Cancer
Institute's (NCI's) tobacco prevention and control research and
dissemination efforts, this monograph is a significant departure
from NCI's previous tobacco control monographs. For many, the
ASSIST project represented a logical progression of NCI's
phased-research approach to reducing tobacco use. For others, it
represented a controversial and overly ambitious leap in a new
direction. Similarly, this monograph departs from the traditional
quantitative evidence review format to emphasize instead the
practical, hands-on experience of program implementation.
Traditional research investigators who defend the sanctity of the
randomized clinical trial, many of whom were uncomfortable with
ASSIST at its outset, will also be uncomfortable with the personal
and anecdotal flavor of this monograph. Public health
practitioners, on the other hand, as well as those investigators
who have immersed themselves in the untidy world of implementation
research, will appreciate the detailed historical accounts of the
complexities, politics, and outright opposition encountered by the
ASSIST team. The collective experiences described in this monograph
provide a rich understanding of the gritty struggle against the
powerful forces of the tobacco industry and its allies. For
students in public health training programs, this work also
provides a unique view of the world outside of academia, where
commercial, political, and public health interests collide in a
struggle to define the policies, norms, and practices that will
affect the health of generations. Monograph 16 begins with the
historical context of ASSIST and the scientific base that informed
the design of the project. The conceptual framework and the
development of organizational infrastructures for implementation
and evaluation are then described. The heart of this monograph is
the in-depth descriptions of ASSIST's media advocacy and policy
development interventions and the challenges posed by the tobacco
industry. The monograph concludes by describing ASSIST's
contributions to tobacco control and other behavioral health
interventions and the significant challenges that remain.
Exposure to environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) has been linked to a
variety of adverse health outcomes. Many Californians are exposed
at home, at work, and in public places. In the comprehensive
reviews published as Reports of the Surgeon General and by the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) and the National
Research Council (NRC), ETS exposure has been found to be causally
associated with respiratory illnesses-including lung cancer,
childhood asthma, and lower respiratory tract infections.
Scientific knowledge about ETS-related effects has expanded
considerably since the release of the above-mentioned reviews. The
state of California has therefore undertaken a broad review of ETS
covering the major health endpoints potentially associated with ETS
exposure: perinatal and postnatal manifestations of developmental
toxicity, adverse impacts on male and female reproduction,
respiratory disease, cancer, and cardiovascular disease. A "weight
of evidence" approach has been used, in which the body of evidence
is examined to determine whether or not it can be concluded that
ETS exposure is causally associated with a particular effect.
Because the epidemiological data are extensive, they serve as the
primary basis for assessment of ETS-related effects in humans. The
report also presents an overview on measurements of ETS exposure
(particularly as they relate to characterizations of exposure in
epidemiological investigations) and on the prevalence of ETS
exposure in California and nationally. ETS, or "secondhand smoke,"
is the complex mixture formed from the escaping smoke of a burning
tobacco product and smoke exhaled by the smoker. The
characteristics of ETS change as it ages and combines with other
constituents in the ambient air. Exposure to ETS is also frequently
referred to as "passive smoking," or "involuntary tobacco smoke"
exposure. Although all exposures of the fetus are "passive" and
"involuntary," for the purposes of this review, in utero exposure
resulting from maternal smoking during pregnancy is not considered
to be ETS exposure.
This monograph is the eleventh volume in the Smoking and Tobacco
Control series released by the National Cancer Institute (NCI). The
National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO)
and the National Association of Local Boards of Health (NALBOH) are
working with NCI in disseminating findings from this important
publication. NACCHO is a nonprofit membership organization that
serves all of the nearly 3,000 local public health agencies (LPHAs)
in the nation's cities, counties, townships, and districts. The
organization provides local health departments with education,
information, research, and technical assistance on a variety of
topics. It also facilitates partnerships among local, state, and
federal agencies in order to promote and strengthen public health.
NALBOH is an organization that represents the interests of local
boards of health and assists those boards in assuring the health of
the community. NALBOH enhances and supports all 3,200 local health
boards across the country by providing linkages, networks,
education, and training. It is also committed to promoting health
and effective public health policy at all levels of government and
also to strengthening the ability of health boards to develop
tobacco control policy efforts. NACCHO and NALBOH constituents have
unique roles in tobacco prevention and control. They often
represent the local government infrastructure, and as such, they
can play leadership roles in local policy development,
implementation, and enforcement. For years, tobacco control
legislation enacted at the city and county levels were much more
stringent than those enacted at the federal or state level.
However, few local communities were involved in implementing and
managing actual public health programs to reduce tobacco use. This
was seen primarily as a national or state responsibility.
Fortunately, local communities have become more involved in recent
years. This trend has been supported mainly by LPHAs, and both
NACCHO and NALBOH have helped local communities become more
involved in the development of public health policy.
This monograph, the fifth in the NCI Smoking and Tobacco Control
series, provides important information for clinicians interested in
reducing the tremendous burden of disease caused by cigarettes and
other tobacco products. As health professionals we can and must
contribute to this effort, both by assisting individual patient
cessation and by contributing to broader tobacco control activities
in our communities. Cigarette smoking is still this Nation's
largest cause of premature death and disability and remains the
only product that, when used as intended by the manufacturer, will
kill the consumer. Every physician and dentist can and should
become a smoking expert to counter the pervasive attempts by the
tobacco industry to convince smokers and would-be smokers that
smoking is desirable, sexy, or fun. We need to remind ourselves
that for decades the cigarette industry blatantly used the medical
profession in cigarette advertising and enticed entire generations
into believing that smoking was safe. Even today, 30 years after it
became known with overwhelming scientific certainty that smoking
was a major health threat, cigarette advertisers still portray
smoking as free from any significant health risk. Health
professionals have been an integral part of the national effort to
reduce smoking in the United States, and in fact, the first major
smoking information campaign launched by the U.S. Public Health
Service was based on changes in physicians' smoking behavior.
However, we must do more.
The first great "public health revolution" in developed countries
involved measures to control infectious disease, and now we are in
the midst of the second revolution: the massive attack on chronic
disease. In this revolution, the dramatic decline in cigarette
smoking in the United States since 1964 stands out as the most
striking success story, which is especially remarkable considering
the fact that antismoking advocates play the part of David against
the Goliath of the tobacco industry. Anti-tobacco forces, including
public advocacy groups, have made steady advances in controlling
the smoking epidemic despite the tobacco industry's greater
expenditures to expand tobacco use. The industry's counterattacks
continue with steadily increasing intensity; this points to a clear
need to increase the scope and effectiveness of all existing
educational and regulatory anti-tobacco strategies. This monograph
on the Community Intervention Trial for Smoking Cessation (COMMIT)
field experience meets this need extraordinarily well because
organizing, activating, and empowering communities to take action
against smoking surely stands as the most important strategy for
use in public health campaigns that emphasize control of tobacco
use. This monograph, Community-Based Interventions for Smokers: The
COMMIT Field Experience, is one of an excellent series on various
aspects of tobacco and health published since 1991 by the National
Cancer Institute and the first to deal with community-based
approaches. It reports exciting victories: (1) a modest decrease in
smoking rates in light-to-moderate smokers, especially in the
hard-to-reach categories of individuals of low educational
attainment and (2) an impressive accomplishment in community
empowerment.
The recent increase in cigar consumption began in 1993 and was
dismissed by many in public health as a passing fad that would
quickly dissipate. Recently released data from the U.S. Department
of Agriculture (USDA) suggests that the upward trend in cigar use
might not be as temporary as some had predicted. The USDA now
projects a total of slightly more than 5 billion cigars were
consumed last year (1997) in the United States. Sales of large
cigars, which comprise about two-thirds of the total U.S. cigar
market, increased 18 percent between 1996 and 1997. Consumption of
premium cigars (mostly imported and hand-made) increased even more,
an astounding 90 percent last year and an estimated 250 percent
since 1993. In contrast, during this same time period, cigarette
consumption declined 2 percent. This dramatic change in tobacco use
raises a number of public health questions: Who is using cigars?
What are the health risks? Are premium cigars less hazardous than
regular cigars? What are the risks if you don't inhale the smoke?
What are the health implications of being around a cigar smoker? In
order to address these questions, the National Cancer Institute
(NCI) undertook a complete review of what is known about cigar
smoking and is making this information available to the American
public. This monograph, number 9 in a series initiated by NCI in
1991, is the work of over 50 scientists both within and outside the
Federal Government. Thirty experts participated in the multi-stage
peer review process. The conclusions presented in the monograph
represent the best scientific judgment, not only of the NCI, but
also of the larger scientific community.
This, the eighth monograph in the Smoking and Tobacco Control
series published by the National Cancer Institute (NCI), is in many
respects also the most significant. Contained in this volume are
new results from five of the world's largest prospective
epidemiological studies defining the magnitude of disease risks
caused by cigarette smoking. Thirty years ago, in January 1966, NCI
published a similar monograph titled Epidemiological Approaches to
the Study of Cancer and Other Chronic Diseases. The report of the
Surgeon General's Advisory Committee on Smoking and Health had been
released in 1964 and had relied extensively on data from
prospective mortality studies to delineate the relationship between
cigarette smoking and various chronic diseases. The 1966 NCI
monograph provided a detailed examination of the outcomes of
several of the large prospective mortality studies presented in the
1964 advisory committee report. At that time, the outcomes
available from these studies were based on 3 to 6 years of follow
up; with the exception of the American Cancer Society's (ACS)
Cancer Prevention Study I (CPS-I), studies in the 1966 NCI
monograph did not include substantial numbers of females. This
monograph includes three new prospective mortality studies (CPS-II,
the Nurses' Health Study, and the Kaiser Permanente Prospective
Mortality study, provides the outcomes of the CPS-I study after 12
years of follow up, and provides 26 years of follow up of the study
of U.S. veterans. Data from these studies provide the most
comprehensive description of the disease consequences produced by
smoking available to date and are accompanied by a detailed
description of the changes in smoking behaviors of the U.S.
population over the past century. Prospective mortality studies
continue to play a critical role in quantifying the relative
mortality risks of smoking for the individual as well as in
estimating the overall disease burden caused by cigarette smoking
in our society. The goal of this monograph is to facilitate both
these tasks by providing, in one volume, comprehensive descriptions
of smoking behaviors and the disease risks that result from those
behaviors.
The National Institutes of Health Publication 10-6287, Pain
Control: Support for People With Cancer, discusses pain control
medicines and other methods to help manage pain, and addresses the
physical and emotional effects of pain. Having cancer doesn't mean
that you will have pain. But if you do, you can manage most of your
pain with medicine and other treatments. This book discusses how to
work with your health care team and others to find the best way to
control your pain.
The National Institutes of Health Publication 12-5726 When Someone
You Love is Being Treated for Cancer: Support for Caregivers
provides caregivers with coping strategies to help them deal with
the stress and anxiety associated with caring for cancer patients.
It discusses communication skills, ways to get support, feelings,
and the need for self-care. This is for you if you're helping your
loved one get through cancer treatment. You are a "caregiver." You
may not think of yourself as a caregiver. You may see what you're
doing as something natural-taking care of someone you love. There
are different types of caregivers. Some are family members, while
others are friends. Every situation is different. So there are
different ways to give care. There isn't one way that works best.
Caregiving can mean helping with day-to-day activities such as
doctor visits or preparing food. But it can also be long-distance,
coordinating care and services for your loved one by phone or
email. Caregiving can also mean giving emotional and spiritual
support. You may be helping your loved one cope and work through
the many feelings that come up at this time. Talking, listening,
and just being there are some of the most important things you can
do. Giving care and support during this challenging time isn't
always easy. The natural response of most caregivers is to put
their own feelings and needs aside. They try to focus on the person
with cancer and the many tasks of caregiving. This may be fine for
a short time. But it can be hard to keep up for a long time. And
it's not good for your health. If you don't take care of yourself,
you won't be able to take care of others.
The National Institutes of Health Publication 11-2059, Taking Time:
Support for People with Cancer, addresses the millions of Americans
alive today who have a history of cancer. It addresses the feeling
and concerns of people with cancer and their families. For them,
cancer has become a chronic (on-going) health problem, like high
blood pressure or diabetes. Just like everyone, people who have
cancer must get regular checkups for the rest of their lives, even
after treatment ends. But unlike other chronic health problems, if
you have cancer you probably won't need to take medicine or eat
special foods once you have finished treatment. If you have cancer,
you may notice every ache, pain, or sign of illness. Even little
aches may make you worry. You may even think about dying. While
it's normal to think these thoughts, it's also important to focus
on living. Although some people do die of it, many with the disease
are treated successfully. Others will live a long time before dying
from it. So, try to make the most of each day while living with
cancer and its treatment. This book was written to help you learn
from other people with cancer. Many people have helped write this
book-patients, their family members, and friends. You will see
their comments in all sections of the book. Finding out how others
respond to cancer might help you understand your own feelings. And
learning how others manage the special problems that cancer brings
might help you find ways to cope with the problems that come along
for you.
When Your Brother or Sister Has Cancer: A Guide for Teens, National
Institutes of Health Publication 06-5733: If your brother or sister
has cancer, this book is for you. In this book you will hear from
other teens who, like you, have a brother or sister with cancer,
find out what has helped them, get ideas about people to talk with
when you're upset or fell all alone, and learn a little about
cancer and how it's treated. This book can't give you all the
answers, but it can help you prepare for some of the things you
might face. There is a team of people working hard to help your
brother or sister get better. You should know that there are also
many people available to help you. No one should go through this
alone. This book provides information about cancer treatments, ways
teens can talk to family and friends, how to connect with other
teens, and where to find other resources for information and
support. It includes a glossary of cancer terms and appendices
explaining monitoring tests and members of the cancer team.
National Institutes for Health Publication 10-3408 Down Home
Healthy Cooking: Recipes and Tips for Healthy Cooking address the
concerns that African Americans suffer from higher rates of serious
diseases like high blood pressure, Type 2 diabetes, heart disease
and some types of cancer. African Americans suffer more serious
health problems and die at an earlier age from these diseases. The
good news is that eating a healthy diet and leading an active
lifestyle promote good health and lowers the chances for getting
these illnesses. A healthy diet includes fruits and vegetables,
whole grains, fat-free or low-fat milk products, lean meats, fish,
beans, eggs, and nuts. A healthy diet is also low in saturated fat,
trans fat, cholesterol, salt and added sugars. Everyone has the
power to make choices to improve his/her health. And eating right
doesn't mean giving up our wonderful soul food. In fact, the basic
staples of traditional soul food include lots of healthy
vegetables: dark leafy greens, sweet potatoes, and high-fiber black
eyed peas just to name a few. But they are often cooked with
ingredients that add too much saturated fat, calories and salt to
our diet. By making a few simple changes, you and your loved ones
can enjoy the flavors of healthy down home cooking. The recipes and
hints in this cookbook will help you get started.
The National Institutes of Health Publication 12-0856, Coping With
Advanced Cancer: Support for People with Cancer, provides
information for patients with end-stage cancer and discusses
treatment options such as palliative care, clinical trials, hospice
care, and home care, as well as symptom control. It addresses
emotional concerns, communicating with friends and family, and
living life to its fullest and with meaning. You've struggled with
the diagnosis, treatment, and maybe the recurrence of cancer. Now
doctors may have told you that you have advanced cancer. They may
have said that your cancer is not responding to treatment and that
long-term remission is no longer likely. Or they may have said they
have run out of standard treatment options. However you learn the
news, it can be devastating to you and your loved ones. Often it's
hard to believe or accept at first. Having advanced cancer can
bring anxiety and uncertainty to your life. But some people with
advanced cancer live far longer than expected. And remember, you
are still in control of your choices and actions. Having an
advanced disease can be a time of personal growth. It can even be a
time of second chances. Many people say they started to see life in
a new way after learning that their cancer had progressed despite
treatment. They realized the importance of making the most of each
day. This booklet stresses four main points: Learning more about
ways you can help yourself may ease some of your concerns; Your
treatment may change, but as always, you deserve to ask for and
receive good medical attention from your health care team and
support from your caregivers; It's important to talk about your
worries, frustrations, and problems, and get support from others.
In fact, it may be one of the best things you can do for yourself;
As your medical care changes, you still have many choices. You can
choose the way you wish to live each day.
The National Institutes of Health Publication 02-5050, Cancer
Clinical Trials: The Basic Workbook, features information about and
different aspects of clinical trials. The self-modulated workbook,
with its accompanying activities, will help readers understand why
cancer clinical trials are important, how they work, how
participant safety is protected, as well as some of the reasons so
few adults participate in these trials. It is designed for
individuals who want to develop a basic understanding of clinical
trials. Scientific discoveries are providing more and more insights
into the causes of cancer. Many of these successes are limited to
the laboratory and have yet to be translated into improved care for
people with cancer. Clinical trials are a critical part of the
research process. Clinical trials help to move basic scientific
research from the laboratory into treatments for people. By
evaluating the results of these trials, we can find better
treatments and ways to prevent, detect, and treat cancer. But very
few adults with cancer-only 3 percent-participate in clinical
trials. We need to test the best cancer prevention, detection, and
treatment ideas in the shortest time possible, and this can only
happen if more people participate in clinical trials. We know that
most people understand very little about clinical trials. National
Cancer Institute (NCI) research has shown that the general public
is either unaware of clinical trials as a treatment/ prevention
option or misinformed about the clinical trial process. The reasons
for this lack of understanding are complex, and there is no simple
solution. We do know, however, that there are many barriers that
discourage both physicians and potential participants from taking
part in clinical trials. By reading this workbook, you are already
helping to overcome some of these barriers. Whether you are a
cancer survivor, someone who works with people with cancer, or
someone who is touched by cancer in another way-this workbook can
help answer your questions about clinical trials. It will help you
understand why cancer clinical trials are important, how they work,
how the participants' safety is protected, and some of the reasons
why more adults don't participate in trials. With this information,
you can help people in your community make informed decisions about
their cancer treatment and prevention options, including the option
of participating in a clinical trial.
With this volume, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) presents the
17th monograph of the Tobacco Control Monograph series. This
monograph documents the evaluation of a groundbreaking NCI program.
The American Stop Smoking Intervention Study for Cancer Prevention,
known as ASSIST, put into practice NCI's commitment to prevent and
reduce tobacco use across all populations and age groups. ASSIST
took evidenced-based interventions from controlled studies and
implemented them in the larger community of 17 states. Its
underlying rationale-that significant decreases in tobacco use
could be realized only with interventions that changed the social
environment such that smoking was non-normative-was a significant
departure from previous tobacco control programs and in the
vanguard of the "new" public health. Prior to ASSIST, few states
addressed tobacco use at the population level. The ASSIST legacy
remains today in the tobacco control professionals whose work
continues to reduce the burden of disability and death caused by
tobacco. ASSIST raised significant conceptual and practical
challenges for its evaluation team. These challenges included
context-dependent implementation and the diffusion of ASSIST and
ASSIST-like interventions into non-ASSIST states. In addition, the
evaluation did not begin until several years after ASSIST was
implemented, and its budget was limited. What had been envisioned
as a simple evaluation of a demonstration project became a complex
evaluation effort that engaged a diverse group of scientists and
practitioners and required numerous sources of data. The resulting
evaluation successfully documented the effectiveness of ASSIST. It
also validated the causal pathway described in NCI's 1991 Smoking
and Tobacco Control Monograph 1: Strategies to Control Tobacco Use
in the United States: A Blueprint for Public Health Action in the
1990's-that comprehensive interventions can change the social
environment of tobacco use and subsequently result in decreased
tobacco use. This monograph stands alone as a documentation of the
ASSIST evaluation and describes the challenges met in evaluating a
program that was influenced by numerous forces outside the
program's control. However, this monograph may also be viewed as a
companion to NCI Tobacco Control Monograph 16, which reviews the
ASSIST program in detail. Together these two monographs provide a
detailed history and evidence base that document the success of an
NCI initiative that began with a series of research hypotheses,
tested those hypotheses with community-based interventions, and
ultimately fielded a demonstration program that fundamentally
changed tobacco use prevention and control in the United States.
This volume and several future volumes in the Tobacco Control
Monograph Series have important implications for research,
practice, and policy in tobacco control as well as in other areas
of public health. Lessons learned from tobacco prevention and
control can be applied to a variety of public health issues,
including physical activity, diet and nutrition, overweight and
obesity, and substance abuse. NCI is committed to disseminating
this cross-cutting knowledge to the widest possible audience so
that others can benefit from the experience of the tobacco
prevention and control community. By so doing, NCI is increasing
the evidence base for effective public health interventions and
improving the translation of research to practice and policy.
This monograph, Risks Associated with Smoking Cigarettes with Low
Machine-Measured Yields of Tar and Nicotine, is the 13th report
published in the National Cancer Institute's (NCI) Smoking and
Tobacco Control Program Monograph Series. One feature of this
monograph is that it blends the old with the new. Monograph 7, The
FTC Cigarette Test Method for Determining Tar, Nicotine, and Carbon
Monoxide Yields of U.S. Cigarettes, covered the history of that
protocol and recommended changes in its procedures. Chapter 2 of
this publication cites this earlier monograph, brings us up to date
on the FTC method, and provides additional suggestions as to what
can be done to help alert the public to the dangers of smoking. The
examination of the scientific literature on low-tar and
low-nicotine cigarettes is not unique to this monograph. Several of
the earlier volumes devoted one or more chapters to discussions of
the various health aspects of tar and nicotine levels. However,
this monograph includes more than just the study of amounts of tar
and nicotine. Chapter 5 includes a discussion on the continued
health risks to smokers, even those who smoke a
low-tar/low-nicotine cigarette, while Chapter 2 describes how
changes in the cigarette design affect an individual's smoking
habit. Chapter 7 points out how the tobacco companies'
advertisements have changed to match the emerging public preference
for low-tar/low-nicotine cigarettes. This monograph is unique in
another important aspect. For the first time, the authors who
prepared the various chapters have had extensive access to the
information gleaned from the internal documents of the tobacco
companies. The tobacco industry files now open to the public and
available on the Internet constitute some 33 million pages of
formal and informal memos, meeting notes, research papers, and
similar corporate documents. Included are marketing strategies that
express the growing concern among the various tobacco companies of
the potential loss of new recruits. This concern over the potential
loss of market was due to the evolving public opinion that smoking
is harmful to health and that it is related to many of the
illnesses that smokers experience over the course of their lives.
The singular message that has been delivered to the public-smoking
causes cancer-is gradually being accepted by more and more people
of all ages.
Smoking cessation is the principal means by which a current
cigarette smoker can alter his or her future risk of disease.
Prevention of smoking initiation among adolescents can reduce
smoking prevalence, but adolescents contribute little to rates of
smoking-related illness until they have been smoking for 30 or more
years. Cessation is often examined at the individual level in order
to deter-mine the effects of cessation interventions or to define
individual predictors of who will or will not be successful in
their cessation attempts. However, for these individual effects to
create a substantive public health benefit, they must sum to create
a significant change at the population level. Powerful
interventions that affect only a few individuals will have little
impact on disease rates, whereas weaker interventions that impact
large numbers of smokers will have important and cumulative effects
on disease rates. In addition, many interventions (e.g., price
increases, changes in social norms, etc.) are delivered to the
population as a whole rather than to individual smokers one at a
time, and it is these population-based interventions that have
formed the core of the tobacco control efforts currently underway
in California, Massachusetts, and several other states. This volume
examines cessation at the population level. By population level, we
mean that all segments of society form the denominator for
evaluation of the effectiveness of tobacco control interventions.
Therefore, this volume relies heavily on representative surveys of
smoking behaviors in state and national populations. By doing so,
it defines measures of cessation that can be used to assess the
effects of tobacco control programs or public policy changes on
smoking behavior. It then uses those measures to identify who is
quitting, who is being successful, who is being exposed to various
tobacco control interventions, and which tobacco control
interventions are proving effective.
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