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Smoking cessation interventions among cancer patients Volume 93, issue 4, Avril 2006

Authors
CAM asbl, groupe de recherche et de formation 106, boulevard de Waterloo, 1000 Bruxelles, Belgique, Centre pour le traitement du tabagisme et de la dépendance à la nicotine (CTT) 106, boulevard de Waterloo, 1000 Bruxelles, Belgique, Université Libre de Bruxelles 50, avenue F. Roosevelt, CP 191, 1050 Ixelles et Institut Jules Bordet 1, rue Héger-Bordet, 1000 Bruxelles, Belgique

What are the benefits of smoking cessation for cancer patients ? Are they motivated to quit smoking ? Which interventions are currently proposed to these patients ? Our literature review emphasizes the risks linked with continued smoking (increased relapse risk, increased second cancer risk…) as well as the abstinence benefits. Some studies have even identified differences in quality of life between smoker and non-smoker cancer patients. Research works also show that cancer patients desire to quit smoking and expect to receive some help to do so. But only a limited number of smoking cessation programs are specifically devoted to those persons. Moreover, the few studies that have evaluated the efficacy of those programs generally contain important methodological bias. In the future, it will then be imperative to explore the smoking cessation benefits in terms of quality of life but also to set up smoking cessation programs and to accurately assess their efficacy.