Boosting self-efficacy and improving practices for smoking prevention and cessation among South American cancer care providers with a web-based algorithm.

Background: Digital technologies have positively impacted the availability and usability of clinical algorithms through the advancement in mobile health. Therefore, this study aimed to determine if a web-based algorithm designed to support the decision-making process of cancer care providers (CCPs) differentially impacted their self-reported self-efficacy and practices for providing smoking prevention and cessation services in Peru and Colombia.

Methods: A simple decision-making tree algorithm was built in REDCap using information from an extensive review of the currently available smoking prevention and cessation resources.

The STOP Program: a Hybrid Smoking Prevention and Cessation Training for Cancer Care Providers in Colombia and Peru.

We designed and tested the feasibility of the Smoking Cessation Training Program for Oncology Practice (STOP), a hybrid (face-to-face plus web-based) educational intervention to enhance Spanish-speaking cancer care professionals' (CCPs') ability to provide brief smoking prevention and cessation counseling to cancer patients and survivors. Changes in the CCPs' competencies (knowledge, attitude, self-efficacy, and practices toward smoking and smoking cessation services) were assessed post-training. Sixty CCPs from one major cancer center in Colombia (n = 30) and Peru (n = 30) were invited to participate in a 4-module hybrid training program on smoking prevention and cessation.

Developing and pre-testing a digital decision-tree smartphone application for smoking prevention and cessation among HIV care providers.

Objectives: The diagnosis and continuous care of chronic conditions such as HIV infection present potential teachable moments for delivering smoking prevention and cessation interventions for patients. We designed and pre-tested a prototype of a smartphone application(app), Decision-T, specifically designed to assist healthcare providers when providing personalized smoking prevention and cessation services to their patients.

Methods: We developed the Decision-T app based on transtheoretical algorithm for smoking prevention and cessation following the 5-A's model.

SMOKING CESSATION TREATMENTS: CURRENT PSYCHOLOGICAL AND PHARMACOLOGICAL OPTIONS.

Background: Smoking is considered an epidemic, indeed, one of the most important public health problems worldwide. It is also the most significant preventable cause of death, of a high number of premature deaths, and avoidable chronic diseases. It is considered an enormous economic burden for the world.

Genetic variants as risk factors for cigarette smoking at an early age and relapse to smoking cessation treatment: A pilot study.

Objectives: Tobacco smoking is a complex and multifactorial disease involving both environmental and genetic factors. In the Mexican mestizo population, single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with cigarette smoking and a greater degree of nicotine addiction have been identified; however, no possible roles have been explored in regard to the age of onset of smoking or in the success of quitting.

Methods: In this study, 151 Mexican mestizo, who smoke cigarettes, were included.

Genetic polymorphisms in CYP2A6 are associated with a risk of cigarette smoking and predispose to smoking at younger ages.

Nicotine is the main component of cigarettes that causes addiction, which is considered a complex disease, and genetic factors have been proposed to be involved in the development of addiction. The CYP2A6 gene encodes the main enzyme responsible for nicotine metabolism. Depending on the study population, different genetic variants of CYP2A6 associated with cigarette smoking have been described.

Polymorphisms in HTR2A and DRD4 Predispose to Smoking and Smoking Quantity.

Background: Genes encoding the receptors involved in the dopaminergic and serotonergic pathways are potential candidates in the mechanisms of nicotine addiction.

Aims: To identify genetic variants in the promoter regions and exons of the DRD4 and HTR2A genes associated with tobacco smoking and the degree of nicotine addiction in Mexican mestizos.

Methods: The study included 438 non-smokers (NS) and 1,157 current smokers, ranked based on their consumption of cigarettes per day (cpd): 574 heavy smokers (HS, >20 cpd) and 583 light smokers (LS, 1-10 cpd).

Use of varenicline for more than 12 months for smoking cessation in heavy chronic obstructive pulmonary disease smokers unmotivated to quit: a pilot study.

Introduction: Use of varenicline for as long as necessary to achieve abstinence has not been studied. The aim of this study was to test whether smokers with mild-to-moderate chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are able to quit if they use varenicline for a sufficient length of time.

Methods: A total of 30 heavy smokers with COPD took varenicline for sufficiently long enough for smoking cessation.