Lung Cancer Health Center

Nicotine and Cancer: Are You Among Misinformed?

Anyone Can Quit continued...

The smokers in the survey averaged two unsuccessful attempts at quitting before entering the program, and men and women were equally successful with their latest attempt.

Motivation was the biggest predictor of whether someone would succeed or fail to quit. Another big predictor was how comfortable people were in their first few days without cigarettes.

People who try to quit "cold turkey" with no nicotine replacement almost always fail, Reichert says. And even those who use gums or patches often don't use as much as they need to. She adds that joining a smoking-cessation program can make all the difference when a smoker really wants to quit.

"A three-pack-a-day smoker may need to use three patches at once to get the same amount of nicotine that their body is used to getting," she says. "That is more than is recommended, and it should be done under medical supervision. But with intensive long-term nicotine replacement it is absolutely possible for everyone to quit."