Reynolds targets smokers trying to quit with new snus campaign

Source: www.csnews.com Author: staff R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. wants cigarette smokers to consider Snus if they are trying to quit. According to the Winston-Salem Journal, the giant tobacco company has launched a national campaign marketing Camel Snus as a potential New Year’s Resolution solution for smokers. It’s the company’s first campaign aimed specifically at encouraging smokers to switch to Camel Snus, according to David Howard, a Reynolds spokesman. "A lot of adults make a decision to quit smoking this time of the year," said Howard in the report. "For those making that attempt, but still wanting the pleasure of tobacco, we’re saying ‘Here’s an option." Reynolds has run ads in large-circulation magazines such as Entertainment Weekly, People, Sports Illustrated, Time and US Weekly, as well as free and alternative publications, according to the report. In the "2011 smoke-free resolution" ad, Reynolds said it supports smokers who have decided to quit using tobacco. "But if you’re looking for smoke-free, spit-free, drama-free tobacco pleasure, Camel Snus is your answer," the ad’s text reads. The ads also contain a large warning that "smokeless tobacco is addictive." Howard said that the "drama-free" reference is aimed at adults who want to use tobacco products in restaurants, bars and other social outlets where smoking is discouraged or banned. Reynolds’ print ads are part of a "take the pleasure switch challenge" campaign tied to an age-restricted Camel Snus Web site. As might have been expected, some anti-smoking groups are upset by the ads. "The ads are trying [...]

2010-12-30T15:54:40-07:00December, 2010|Oral Cancer News|
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Michael Douglas Fights Oral Cancer

Source: The Science of Dentistry Actor Michael Douglas‘ recent revelation that he has stage IV oral cancer has highlighted the growing incidence of oral cancer, and experts say dentists can help stem the alarming increase of the disease by checking for it during routine examinations.The actor’s cancer includes a walnut-sized tumor at the base of his tongue, and he will require radiation therapy, chemotherapy, and surgery. Douglas says his doctors told him he has an 80% survival rate if it hasn’t spread to his lymph nodes. While tobacco was the prime cause of oral cancer in the past, recent studies have attributed the steady increase of the disease to the human papillomavirus (HPV). HPV are common viruses that cause warts. There are approximately 130 versions of HPV but only nine cause cancers, and the HPV16 version causes almost half of the oral cancers in the U.S., said Brian Hill, executive director of the Oral Cancer Foundation. “Tobacco is no longer the only bad guy,” he told DrBicuspid.com. “HPV16 is increasing in incidence as the causative etiology, and if it continues on this trend line, it will replace tobacco as the primary cause of oral cancers.” Dentists can play a key role in catching the disease in its early stages if they check for it during examinations.  Most Americans have never even heard of oral cancer, but it’s not as rare or uncommon as people would like to think it is. This is why an opportunistic screening by the dental community [...]

2010-12-13T15:13:27-07:00December, 2010|OCF In The News, Oral Cancer News|
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More Indians chew tobacco blend, get oral cancer

Source: Boston.com By: Adi Narayan MUMBAI — Safiq Shaikh was 13 when he began chewing a blend of tobacco, areca nut, and spices that jolted him awake when his job at a textile loom got too dreary. Five years later, doctors in Mumbai lopped off his tongue to halt the cancer that was spreading through his mouth. Shaikh believed the fragrant, granular mixture he chewed, known in India as gutka, was a harmless stimulant and at first he ignored the milky lump growing inside his mouth. Now Shaikh is one of about 200,000 Indians diagnosed with a tobacco-related malignancy this year, said his surgeon, Pankaj Chaturvedi. India now has the highest number of oral cancers in the world, after a group of entrepreneurs known locally as “gutka barons’’ turned a 400-year-old tobacco product hand-rolled in betel leaves into a spicy blend sold for 2 cents on street corners from Bangalore to New Delhi. Sales of chewing tobacco, worth $4.6 billion in 2004, are on track to double by 2014, according to Datamonitor, a branch of the international research firm based in Hyderabad, India. The combination of tobacco and areca nut makes gutka and its hand-made ancestor, known as paan, addictive, scientists said. Areca nut is the fourth-most commonly used psychoactive substance in the world after tobacco, alcohol, and caffeine, according to the World Health Organization. “Now you have an industrial version of a traditional thing’’ spurring demand, said Chaturvedi, who works at Tata Memorial Hospital in Mumbai, Asia’s largest cancer [...]

2010-12-13T11:35:06-07:00December, 2010|Oral Cancer News|
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Tobacco company pays $5M in groundbreaking case

Source: www.ctlawtribune.com Author: Thomas B. Scheffey Kelly June Hill, Executrix, et al. v. U.S. Smokeless Tobacco: The Altria Group, successor to tobacco marketer United States Smokeless Tobacco of Greenwich, has settled for $5 million a lawsuit filed by the estate of a North Carolina man who died of tongue cancer. The worker, Bobby Hill, initially went to an Ashville, N.C., lawyer, who referred his case to Bridgeport’s Koskoff, Koskoff & Bieder. Partners Antonio Ponvert III and Christopher Bernard launched a state court wrongful death action in Connecticut. From the beginning, Ponvert said, Hill and his family wanted to draw attention to the danger of “dipping snuff” and to discourage youngsters from starting its addictive use. “It’s the first time a plaintiff has won a wrongful death chewing tobacco verdict or settlement in the history of the industry,” said Ponvert. Altria, based in Richmond, Va., also owns Philip Morris, and has a corporate policy of not settling any individual consumer cases, he added. Altria Group spokesman Steve Callahan said, “U.S. Smokeless Tobacco is honoring an agreement it made in this case prior to its acquisition by Altria….We have no current intention to settle cases like this in the future.” Historically, the tobacco industry has fiercely defended itself in the courts. And for decades, it denied that tobacco is addictive or a health risk. More recently, it has maintained that people know the risks of tobacco and they should take personal responsibility if they use it. In the industry, a no-settlement rule [...]

2010-12-12T09:51:00-07:00December, 2010|Oral Cancer News|
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Scared smokeless–The FDA should use the most graphic images possible in its new warnings on cigarette packs.

Source: Los Angeles Times It's easy to guess what would happen if a pharmaceutical company asked the Food and Drug Administration to approve a new product with the following characteristics: no proven health benefits. Major known side effects: greatly increased risk of emphysema, heart attacks, stroke and cancer, including lung, cervical, mouth, stomach and bladder. The product also lowers bone density in older women and causes higher rates of serious health problems among newborns. It significantly harms the health even of those who merely spend time near the drug while it's in use. And it's addictive. If cigarettes were a new invention, they'd never pass muster with even the most lax of regulatory agencies. Unhappily for our collective health, not only does tobacco's legacy date back thousands of years, but it is inextricably tied to the birth of the United States. None other than John Rolfe, best known as Pocahontas' husband, is credited with the first commercial cultivation of tobacco in Jamestown, in 1612. Four hundred years later, we've learned a thing or two about tobacco, especially in its inhaled form. Now we wrestle with how to act on that information. Cigarettes are a terrible health scourge, but this is also a country that respects the right of adults, in most cases, to ruin their own health as long as they are not endangering others. So driving drunk is forbidden, as is smoking in many indoor public spaces, but cigarettes themselves remain legal. Yet as a society, we don't want to [...]

2010-11-23T10:56:50-07:00November, 2010|Oral Cancer News|
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Smokeless Tobacco Rates on the Rise

Source: WebMD By: Bill Hendrick Even after a generation of warnings from public health officials about the dangers of tobacco use, about 20% of Americans still smoke cigarettes, a CDC report says. The report also shows the rate of smokers who also use smokeless tobacco, such as chewing tobacco and snuff, is rising. Using smokeless tobacco can keep the nicotine habit alive, making it even harder to quit than going cold turkey, Terry Pechacek, PhD, of the CDC, tells WebMD. More Americans are turning to smokeless tobacco because of laws that prohibit smoking in public places such as bars, restaurants, and airplanes -- and also because smokeless forms can be used in offices and on the job, Pechacek says. Immediate Benefits of Smoking Cessation The tobacco companies market smokeless tobacco as a substitute for smokers, but they don’t help people quit smoking, Pechacek tells WebMD. “We are making no progress in getting people to quit smoking,” he says. “This is a tragedy. Over 400,000 people are dying prematurely and won’t be able to walk their children down the aisle or see their grandchildren.” Contrary to common beliefs of smokers, the benefits of quitting start immediately, Pechacek tells WebMD. “We see lower rates for heart attacks within months of quitting,” he says. “And lower rates for lung cancer, too. Stopping a decline in lung function is one of the biggest benefits of quitting smoking.” The national smoking prevalence rate was 20.6% in 2008 and 2009. About 23% of males smoke, compared [...]

2010-11-22T12:24:26-07:00November, 2010|Oral Cancer News|
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Diagnosis for Michael Douglas highlights oral cancer risk

Source: www.dental-tribune.com Author: Fred Michmershuizen, DTA After it became known recently that the Academy Award winning actor Michael Douglas has been diagnosed with oral cancer, dental professionals around the world seized on an opportunity to urge members of the public to pay more attention to key risk factors and early warning signs of the disease. The Academy Award winner was diagnosed with a tumor in his throat, and he now faces an eight-week course of chemotherapy and radiotherapy. This high-profile case has brought oral cancers into the limelight, and oral health experts are keen to make the public more aware of the key risk factors and early warning signs. The British Dental Health Foundation is calling for more attention to be paid to mouth cancers. The foundation is advising the public to regularly check their mouths. Douglas quit smoking in 2006, after a long “half a pack a day” habit. Yet, according to the foundation, the possibility of developing oral cancer remains higher for ex-smokers than non-smokers for 20 years after quitting. Tobacco is considered to be the main cause of mouth cancer, with three in four cases being linked to smoking, according to the foundation. Drinking in excess is also a known factor, with those who both smoke and drink to excess being up 30 times more likely to be at risk. “It is crucial the public know about the risk factors and early symptoms as early detection can save lives,” said Dr. Nigel Carter, chief executive of the [...]

2010-11-07T08:29:37-07:00November, 2010|Oral Cancer News|
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Beware the signs of mouth cancer

Source: www.pressandjournal.co.uk Author: Lisa Salmon Most people think of a mouth ulcer as a minor irritation that will disappear in a few days. Normally they’re right. But if the ulcer doesn’t heal and lasts longer than three weeks, it could be a sign of something more sinister: mouth cancer. Mouth, or oral, cancer, which can affect the lips, tongue, cheeks and throat, is one of the UK’s fastest-growing cancers. In the past decade, incidences have risen by 41% and, of the 5,000 people diagnosed with the disease every year, it kills around 2,000 of them. That’s one every five hours. About 70% of mouth cancers are detected at a late stage, which dramatically reduces the chances of survival. Yet if the cancer is detected early, more than 90% of people survive. For that reason, the British Dental Health Foundation (BDHF) has organised Mouth Cancer Action Month. In November, the organisation aims to raise awareness of the condition – which recently struck the film star Michael Douglas – so that people recognise the warning signs and are regularly checked for mouth cancer by their dentist. Signs include ulcers which haven’t healed after three weeks and lumps, or red or white patches, in the mouth, all of which can be mistaken for something less serious. In addition, swelling below the neck or chin, pain when chewing or swallowing, or a feeling that you have something in your throat that can’t be swallowed, can also indicate the disease. If you have any of [...]

2010-10-31T11:01:56-07:00October, 2010|Oral Cancer News|
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“Staggering” lack of awareness of mouth cancer revealed

Source: Dental Health Foundation A NEW SURVEY undertaken by British Dental Health Foundation has revealed an alarming lack of awareness about the causes and symptoms of one of the UK’s fastest growing cancers – mouth cancer. Despite the recent case of actor Michael Douglas, who is suffering from advanced throat cancer, the answers from over 1,000 members of the public who were questioned in the survey for Mouth Cancer Action Month supported by Denplan reveal that there is only limited knowledge and understanding of this potentially deadly disease. One person in 10 claimed not even to have heard of mouth cancer. Chief Executive of the Foundation, Dr Nigel Carter, said: “After recent high profile coverage of the Michael Douglas case it is staggering to see that some people still have no awareness at all of the condition." Dr Carter added: “It is vital that the public have a greater awareness because survival rates increase massively with early detection from just 50 percent to 90 percent. The public need to be aware of the risk factors and whether they are in a high risk group and how they can self–examine or who they can turn to if they’re concerned.” The results of the survey reveal that it is the older members of the public who are most aware of mouth cancer, with more than 96 percent of those interviewed saying that they had heard of it. Dr Carter added: “This sounds good as the majority of cases occur in the over [...]

2010-10-31T11:03:00-07:00October, 2010|Oral Cancer News|
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