Quitting Smoking is Easy...

"Quitting smoking is easy. I've done it a thousand times."
-Mark Twain

His face hardened and he emphatically repeated his statement that he was not interested in quitting smoking. He had smoked since he was thirteen and knew people who had smoked into their 90's and died of something else. There was no way that we would ever convince him that it was time to give up something that made him so happy. We held the same discussion each visit.

Smoking causes cancer; about half of cancer in the US can be linked directly to tobacco use. In my practice, the percentage is higher, since smoking causes over 90% of cancers of the mouth, throat, and voice box. I talk about smoking with all of my patients and support those that try to quit.

A new cancer diagnosis is a great opportunity to talk about cessation since these patients are more likely to quit smoking than people without a tobacco-related illness.

A recent review article by Lisa Sanderson Cox from the Lombardi Cancer Center at Georgetown University in Washington, DC (Cancer 2003; 98:632-44) explores nicotine dependence in cancer patients. She found the time of diagnosis and treatment can be a time of increased willingness to try to quit. Multiple interventions and resources increase the success rate.

Another recalcitrant patient surprised me a while ago by announcing that he had finally quit smoking. I congratulated him and asked him how he had done it. He frowned, pointed to the portable oxygen tank, jerked his finger towards his family and said, "My daughter won't buy them for me anymore!" She just sighed.

Bruce H. Campbell, MD, FACS
Professor of Otolaryngology and Communication Sciences
Chief, Division of Head and Neck Oncology
Interim Director, Froedtert & The Medical College of Wisconsin Cancer Center

"Dear Doctor" is a compilation of patient questions answered by doctors from the Medical College of Wisconsin.