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Drugs, Vaccines and Therapeutics
by ruth on May 11, 2006

The second nicotine free smoking-cessation drug has just been approved by the FDA. Varenicline, marketed as Chantix, is marketed by Pfizer Inc. and is supposed to be taken twice daily for 12 weeks.
How does it work?
Varenicline latches on to the same receptors in the brain that nicotine binds to when inhaled in cigarette smoke, an action that leads to the release of dopamine in the pleasure centers of the brain. Taking the drug blocks any inhaled nicotine from reinforcing that effect.
The drug also slows the release of dopamine, which cuts the craving to smoke that occurs when nicotine's effect wears off, said Pfizer research chemist Jotham Coe, who invented the drug.
Pfizer hopes to get the drug out in the market later his year, and has also applied for EU regulatory approval. Analysts say this could have the making of a blockbuster drug, possibly netting $500 million in annual sales by 2009.
Read more from AP via Mercury News. MSNBC has more, which also points out that the success of Chantix depends on medical insurance schemes, and whether it would be considered as preventative medicine.
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Mr Wong
Vote for FDA Approves Pfizer's Anti-Smoking Drug Chantix™:
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Rating: 7.86 out of 7 vote(s) cast.
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Response from:
John R. Polito
(08/30/06 9:54am)
Response from:
bonnie
(12/10/06 12:02pm)
HaS ANYONE TRIED CHANTIX? DID IT HELP? DID IT MAKE YOU SICK? DID YOU TAKE IT AS PRESCRIBED OR TAKE LESS AS SOME MDS ARE SUGGESTING?
Response from:
Zebbie
(02/05/07 1:54am)
I HAVE GOTTEN MY SCRIPT AND MY FEAR IS THE SIDE EFFECTS!! NOT SO MUCH THE UPSET BELLY, BUT THE DREAMS. ARE THEY BAD ONES? ALL SO I SEEN WHERE THE BREATHING COULD BE AFFECTED AS A LONG SHOT EFFECT. i ALSO HERE THAT DEPRESSION MAY BE A SIDE EFFECT. IF SO DOES IT LAST? YOU SEE I HAVE ANXIETYAND TAKING OF NEW DRUGS IS PART OF THAT.
Response from:
Nicki
(02/08/07 7:33pm)
Ive been on Chantix for a month and it is great. It reduces the cravings. There are minor side effects but nothing that will ruin your day. The nausea you will get if you dont take fod with the pill. If you take the pill with food the nausea goes away after about 10 minutes. The dreams arent bad. They are vivid, but not nightmares. Ive had crazy ones every night since I started the drug and not a single nightmare.
I recommend this drug. The side effects ar eminimal and it helps. You have ot be READY to quit for it to work.
I recommend this drug. The side effects ar eminimal and it helps. You have ot be READY to quit for it to work.
Response from:
Tom
(02/17/07 4:03pm)
Chantix works great. We'll be hearing alot about this drug as more people have success with it. I took it for 30 days total and quit smoking on day 10.
Response from:
Elana
(03/03/07 3:49am)
My husband took it and developed a rash all over his body that is still not completely gone. His cravings quit completely, he was happy. Then the all over itchy rash. I called the Chantix helpline but they were useless.
Response from:
John
(09/20/07 3:49pm)
I quit smoking after using http://www.pillavenue.com>Chantix
for 6 weeks. I haven't had any side effects :)
for 6 weeks. I haven't had any side effects :)
Response from:
Jerry Juneson
(10/14/07 9:48pm)
Two of my friends used Chantix and both are still smoking. I used Chantix and developed the rapid heart rate associated with this drug. A couple of weeks later I quit cold turkey and haven't looked back.
Response from:
lynn d.
(10/24/07 12:38pm)
I'm nearing age 61 and had smoked since the age of 19. August 5th 2007 was the last day I smoked a cigarette. Now it's late October. I still haven't smoked again. And I have stopped thinking as often about suicide. I have to say that in all my years of ups and downs and mood swings, suicide was never a part of my thought processes. When I was down, I just allowed myself the luxury of being non-productive, knowing that "mood" would pass. But while taking that third month's prescription of Chantix during July and for about a month afterwards, suicide became a real "curiosity" for me, something I thought about and did a little research on. I wasn't wildly emotional, quite the opposite.
So, this is a mixed review of the drug. Yes, I have stopped smoking for a few months now after forty years of smoking between one and two packs a day. No, I have no urge or desire to buy cigarettes and resume the habit. Yes, I still miss the act/action of smoking. No, I don't miss the rude looks [or the averted eyes of those looking away] from others when I did smoke. No, I don't think about suicide or do "google" research on it anymore. No, I don't feel any physical addiction or need for nicotine any longer. Yes, if I lived in a country where I wasn't made to feel like a third-rate citizen because I smoked, I would take up the habit all over again.
Will I be one of the "1 in 10" who will succeed and not resume smoking within a year? I think so. Time will tell.
So, this is a mixed review of the drug. Yes, I have stopped smoking for a few months now after forty years of smoking between one and two packs a day. No, I have no urge or desire to buy cigarettes and resume the habit. Yes, I still miss the act/action of smoking. No, I don't miss the rude looks [or the averted eyes of those looking away] from others when I did smoke. No, I don't think about suicide or do "google" research on it anymore. No, I don't feel any physical addiction or need for nicotine any longer. Yes, if I lived in a country where I wasn't made to feel like a third-rate citizen because I smoked, I would take up the habit all over again.
Will I be one of the "1 in 10" who will succeed and not resume smoking within a year? I think so. Time will tell.
Response from:
Rick
(06/10/08 1:07pm)
At age 60 after 40 years of smoking over a pack a day, Chantrix has worked for me with minimal side effects. While I have only been smoke free for 4 weeks and off the pills for four days, I am very confident it worked for me with no weight gain (yet). It will continue to work.
I can't say enough good things about the drug, yes is does dumb you down a little but this was a small price to pay.
I can't say enough good things about the drug, yes is does dumb you down a little but this was a small price to pay.
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http://whyquit.com/pr/082506.html
Smokers want an effective intervention but Chantix isn't it.
John R. Polito
Nicotine Cessation Educator