Tobacco.org

Defeating Nicotine's Double Role In Lung Cancer 

A lung cancer treatment that inhibits nicotine receptors was shown to double survival time in mice, according to Italian researchers.

The results of the early phase animal model study were reported in the June 15 issue of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

Changes in genes encoding nicotine receptors are strongly associated not only with the tendency to smoke, but with susceptibility to lung cancer. Nicotine exposure also heightens the expression of the nicotine receptors, which leads to increased cell proliferation and inhibition of apoptosis, further setting the stage for cancer.

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SPINDEL: Is Nicotine the Estrogen of Lung Cancer? ($$) 

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Inhibition of Nonneuronal {alpha}7-Nicotinic Receptor for Lung Cancer Treatment  

Rationale: Studies strongly suggest that the nicotinic acetylcholine receptors for nicotine (nAChRs) play a significant role in lung cancer predisposition and natural history. The nAChR {alpha}7 subunit has been found to be pivotal in the control of nicotine-induced lung cancer development and in growth signal transduction induced by nicotine binding to nAChRs. . . .

Conclusions: We report the prolonged survival of {alpha}-CbT–treated animals in our mouse model of NSCLC, which is most likely the result of multiple mechanisms, including various antiproliferative and antiangiogenic effects.

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Cisplatin doubles lung cancer survival time in mice 

A lung cancer treatment that inhibits nicotine receptors was shown to double survival time in mice, according to Italian researchers.

The results of the early phase animal model study were reported in the June 15 issue of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

Changes in genes encoding nicotine receptors are strongly associated not only with the tendency to smoke, but with susceptibility to lung cancer. Nicotine exposure also heightens the expression of the nicotine receptors, which leads to increased cell proliferation and inhibition of apoptosis, further setting the stage for cancer.

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Genes and smoking play role in rheumatoid arthritis 

Recent genetic studies have revealed several new sites of genes that are risk factors for developing rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The strongest association with anti-citrullinated protein antibody (ACPA)-positive RA (ACPAs are autoantibodies detected in RA that are used as a major diagnostic tool) has been found for the HLA-DRB1 gene, and this site seems to play a central role in susceptibility to the disease in Caucasian populations. Previous studies have shown a high increase in the risk of ACPA-positive RA associated with smoking in those who have certain variations of the HLA-DRB1 gene. There are several types of such alleles related to a particular amino acid sequence known as shared epitope (SE). ACPAs occur in about 60 percent of RA patients and are closely linked to the presence of SE alleles. In fact, SE alleles are the strongest genetic risk factor for ACPA-positive RA. . . .

The authors conclude that while SE alleles do not seem to confer an increased risk of ACPA-negative RA either on their own or in combination with smoking, all SE DRB1 alleles strongly interact with smoking in the development of ACPA-positive RA.

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FDA v. Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corp., 529 U.S. 120 (2000), U.S. Supreme Court  

O'CONNOR, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which REHNQUIST, C. J., and SCALIA, KENNEDY, and THOMAS, JJ., joined. BREYER, J., filed a dissenting opinion, in which STEVENS, SOUTER, and GINSBURG, JJ., joined, post, p. 161. . . .

(c) The history of tobacco-specific legislation also demonstrates that Congress has spoken directly to the FDA's authority to regulate tobacco products. Since 1965, Congress has enacted six separate statutes addressing the problem of tobacco use and human health. Those statutes, among other things, require that health warnings appear on all packaging and in all print and outdoor advertisements . . .

it is evident that Congress has ratified the FDA's previous, long-held position that it lacks jurisdiction to regulate tobacco products as customarily marketed. Congress has created a distinct scheme for addressing the subject, and that scheme excludes any role for FDA regulation.

FDA tobacco bill  

The FDA tobacco bill, also known as the "Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act," or the "Waxman tobacco bill" is legislation designed to give the U.S. Food and Drug Administration the power to regulate tobacco products. It was first introduced in the U.S. Congress in February, 2007, and was reintroduced in 2008 and again in 2009.[1]

News reports have indicated the bill was produced through negotiations between Philip Morris and the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.[2]

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VIDEO: Burr, Hagan Aim for New Agency to Regulate Tobacco  

North Carolina's senators are fighting a bill that would allow the Food and Drug Administration to regulate the sale of tobacco.

A vote in the U.S. Senate on Monday allowed the bill to move forward, and the House already passed a similar version of the legislation, which the president has said he will sign into law.

Senators Richard Burr and Kay Hagan have been working together for months to create a plan to regulate tobacco without involving the FDA. Their last plan was rejected a few weeks ago, but Burr's office has confirmed they will try once again to create a new agency to regulate the industry.

North Carolina is the nation's top tobacco producer, and the industry employs tens of thousands of the state's residents. The alliance between Republican Sen. Burr and Democrat Sen. Hagan is understandable.

"I think you need to realize here in North Carolina, many of these farms are third-generation farmers. Their families live here. This is their way of life. This is their culture," said Hagan.

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S.982 - Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act  

111th Congress - A bill to protect the public health by providing the Food and Drug Administration with certain authority to regulate tobacco products. . . .

Introduced:

5/05/2009

Sponsor:

Edward Kennedy

Show Co-Sponsors (52)

* Daniel Akaka

* Max Baucus

* Evan Bayh

* Mark Begich

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S.579 - Federal Tobacco Act of 2009  

Summary

A bill to establish a comprehensive Federal tobacco product regulatory program, to create a Tobacco Regulatory Agency, to prevent use of tobacco products by youth, and to provide protections for adult tobacco product users through the regulation of the tobacco products manufacturing industry. (by CRS) . . .

Interests who did not want this bill to become law included these interests and specific groups:

Show organizations

* American Academy of Family Physicians

* American Academy of Nurse Practitioners

* American Academy of Pediatrics

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H.R.1256 - Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act  

Title

111th Congress - To protect the public health by providing the Food and Drug Administration with certain authority to regulate tobacco products, to amend title 5, United States Code, to make certain modifications in the Thrift Savings Plan, the Civil Service Retirement System, and the Federal Employees' Retirement System, and for other purposes. hidemore...

Other titles

* To protect the public health by providing the Food and Drug Administration with certain authority to regulate tobacco products. . . .

* Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act . . .

The bill was voted on in the House on April 2, 2009

* Supporters & Opponents

* Votes

* Timeline of Contributions

* Committees

* History & Status

* In the News

* Read about this bill at OpenCongress

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Milestones in Food and Drug Law History 

1906

The original Food and Drugs Act is passed by Congress on June 30 and signed by President Theodore Roosevelt. It prohibits interstate commerce in misbranded and adulterated foods, drinks and drugs. . . .

1933

FDA recommends a complete revision of the obsolete 1906 Food and Drugs Act. The first bill is introduced into the Senate, launching a five-year legislative battle. . . .

1938

The Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic (FDC) Act of 1938 is passed by Congress, containing new provisions:

* Extending control to cosmetics and therapeutic devices.

* Requiring new drugs to be shown safe before marketing-starting a new system of drug regulation.

* Eliminating the Sherley Amendment requirement to prove intent to defraud in drug misbranding cases.

* Providing that safe tolerances be set for unavoidable poisonous substances. . . .

2000

The U. S. Supreme Court, upholding an earlier decision in Food and Drug Administration v. Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corp. et al., ruled 5-4 that FDA does not have authority to regulate tobacco as a drug. Within weeks of this ruling, FDA revokes its final rule, issued in 1996, that restricted the sale and distribution of cigarettes and smokeless tobacco products to children and adolescents, and that determined that cigarettes and smokeless tobacco products are combination products consisting of a drug (nicotine) and device components intended to deliver nicotine to the body.

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Regulation of Tobacco Products: What FDA Legislation Would Do 

The "Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act," amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) to grant the FDA authority to regulate the manufacturing, marketing and sale of tobacco products.

The bill adds a new chapter to the FFDCA to regulate tobacco products. Tobacco products would not be regulated under the "safe and effective" standard currently used for other products under the agency’s purview, but under a new standard — "appropriate for the protection of the public health."

The key features of the "Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act" include:

*

Restrictions on marketing and sales to youth — The legislation includes specific restrictions on youth access and marketing and grants the FDA authority to take additional actions in the future to protect the public health.

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Senator Reveals Philip Morris Co-Authored FDA Tobacco Bill 

Senator Mike Enzi, ranking member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), confirmed May 21 that cigarette maker Philip Morris co-authored the bill currently under consideration in Congress, for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to regulate tobacco products. Enzi was rebuffed in efforts to amend the bill to move regulatory authority over tobacco to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), saying the CDC was more appropriate since the "FDA cures, not poisons." Enzi criticized the HELP Committee's rush to "sign a peace treaty with Philip Morris," instead of "fighting tobacco head on." He said, "My fierce opposition to smoking is a result of smoking killing my dad, and my mom, and my mother-in-law, and secondhand smoke conclusively affecting me." The FDA tobacco bill has been criticized by the American Association of Public Health Physicians (pdf) and FDA Commissioner Dr. Andrew von Eschenbach, as tying the FDA's hands while misleading consumers and cementing Philip Morris' market share. Philip Morris began its "Regulatory Strategy Project" -- a long-term, behind-the-scenes project to enact "regulations" friendly to the company -- in 1999, after the Supreme Court struck down a government-initiated effort to regulate tobacco. Philip Morris' crafting the bill behind closed doors with the National Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids was also described by Roll Call, back in October 2004.

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Tobacco Control Research Home 

About Tobacco Control Research Branch

Mission and vision

TCRB Fact Sheet (PDF)

Staff List

NCI's Tobacco and Cancer Homepage

Resources for Smokers

Smokefree.gov

National Network of Tobacco Cessation Quitlines

Publications

Calculating Your Risk from Smoking

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