JMC’s Interdisciplinary Smoking

Tobacco smoking is the leading cause of preventable death in the United States, accounting for more than 400,000 deaths per year.1 This is an astounding figure, equivalent to three 747 airliner crashes per day, each day for the entire year. Despite these risks, the prevalence of smoking remains quite high, with approximately 25 % of the adult US population currently smoking cigarettes.2 Of all of the attributable smoking related diseases, lung cancer remains one of the leading sources of major morbidity and mortality within the population, and a significant source of healthcare resource expenditure, especially among economically disadvantaged cohorts.3 Such sobering statistics belie the fact that about 70 % of smokers express a desire to quit, and 50 % make some attempt at cessation annually.4 Yet long term success remains elusive for the vast majority of smokers. In order to significantly improve these dismal rates, a successful smoking cessation intervention may require intensive staffing resources, for example, providing patient counseling and arranging periodic follow-up visits, resources most primary care physicians, the traditional providers of cessation services, may not have at thei