Yale Will Enroll Patients in Smoking Cessation Study Combining Nicotine Patch and Naltrexone

Cigarette smokers interested in quitting are invited to join a six-week, research treatment study at Yale School of Medicine that combines the nicotine patch and naltrexone, a medication used to help fight addictions.

All participants will receive the patch and naltrexone, or a placebo. Naltrexone is what is known as an opiate antagonist, which means it is a medication that works to block the effects of opiates in the brain.

The study is being conducted as part of the Transdisciplinary Tobacco Use Research Center (TTURC) at Yale, which is one of seven universities around the nation participating in the $70 million research effort jointly sponsored by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the National Cancer Institute, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Each team is investigating a different aspect of tobacco use and nicotine addiction. Yale received a $10 million grant and is focusing on improving tobacco addiction treatment.

According to Stephanie O’Malley, Ph.D., principal investigator of the project, “It is critically important that more effective smoking cessation treatments be developed because most smokers try to quit only once every three to four years.”

Persons eligible for the Yale study must be 18 or older; smoke at least 20 cigarettes a day; and must not be using opiate-containing medications (e.g., codeine, percocet, methadone). Women who enroll in the study may not be pregnant or nursing and must use a reliable form of birth control.

Each participant will complete two preliminary appointments of about two hours each where they will receive a physical examination, give blood and urine samples for laboratory work, fill out questionnaires and set a date to quit smoking. During the treatment phase, patients will go to the center once a week for six weeks for 45-minute counseling appointments and medication refills. Follow-up appointments will be scheduled three, six and 12 months following the quit date.

The program is being offered at the Substance Abuse Treatment Unit in New Haven and at the Veterans Administration Connecticut Healthcare System in Newington.

Recruitment for the study is in progress. The treatment is free of charge. Interested persons who would like further information may call 203-974-7588 and ask for Michelle.