Chantix recommended to quit smoking despite safety concerns

New York, NY: One has only to read the revealing essay by writer Derek De Koff in New York Magazine, to get a true appreciation for the risks, and the reality of Chantix—a smoking cessation medication that has resulted in thousands of adverse affect reports to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and several actual suicides.
Two deaths in particular have caught the world's attention. One was Carter Albrecht, a musician and one-time member of the band Edie Brickell and the New Bohemians (Brickell is married to musician Paul Simon). On Chantix for barely a few weeks, Albrecht turned on his girlfriend before attempting to break into a neighbor's home. The startled homeowner fired a bullet through the door, killing the musician on September 3rd, 2007.
Chantix SmokerHowever, it was the tragic death of Omer Jama, a 39-year-old video editor from England that really focused the world's attention to the darker side of Chantix, which is marketed as Champix in the UK. Jama had been eager to kick his smoking habit, and had heard about the 'revolutionary' Champix. "He was so excited about giving up smoking," said his brother Ali, 41, "like a kid waiting for Christmas."
Jama was prescribed Champix by his physician. Jama's family and friends indicated that he had no history of depression or mental illness, and just days before his death had booked a holiday to Cuba, about which he was looking so forward.
It was not long before he was found dead in his Manchester flat, both wrists slit. Omer's brother Ali immediately thought of the pills, according to a report in the The Sun. A friend had started on Champix and suffered violent mood swings. "But Omer wasn't worried about taking them himself because he had no history of moodiness.
"It was totally out of character for him to do something like this."
American writer De Koff's experience with Chantix in New York is equally revealing, according to his sprawling essay that delves into the approval process of Chantix. Specifically 3,659 individuals were carefully selected for the pre-market trial. Those with any history of depression, panic disorder, heart disease, alcohol or drug abuse, diabetes, or people with kidney or liver issues were excluded from the testing. A spokesperson from Pfizer told De Koff that the Chantix manufacturer had to isolate the different variables that could affect the outcome, in order to satisfy FDA criteria. A spokesperson with the FDA confirmed that it is indeed not unusual to exclude participants with major psychological or medical illness from certain clinical trials.
However, given the expected and realized widespread appeal of Chantix and Champix, medication that would be presumably used by people with the very conditions Pfizer excluded from the trial, the results of the clinical trial clearing Chantix/Champix for market could hardly be seen as a true representation.
Sure enough, some Chantix users with a history of psychiatric difficulty, had difficulty with Chantix. However, so too did people who had no prior emotional axes to grind.

Writer De Koff was one of them. Almost immediately after starting on the Chantix program, he reports having extremely vivid, and sometimes disturbing dreams that over time began to take on epic proportions. De Koff also notes that sleep while on Chantix took on an unusual quality...that he wasn't really sleeping at all, but was resting while being constantly 'on guard' for something. He alludes to an assumption that his R.E.M. sleep patterns were dramatically affected during this time.
While admitting that smoking cigarettes had become "an exercise in futility" as there was no pleasure to be found, his dreams and everything else happening during his waking hours were becoming a concern.
"One afternoon, I was typing away at advertising copy, and as I did so, I began to wonder how I had succeeded in fooling myself that my life had any sort of value at all," De Koff writes. "Writing? Sure, it was what I'd wanted to do since I was six—but at the end of the day, who cared? Maybe I should just go downstairs and leap in front of a tour bus. Or launch my head through the computer screen. All this seemed logical, but also weirdly funny, even at the time: I could see how crazy these impulses were, I could recognize them as suicidal clichés. But I couldn't make them go away."
An acquaintance on Chantix told him that it was getting easier by the day and the nausea, which De Koff experienced the first day on Chantix, had stopped. But another Chantix user told him that the medication worked, but left him feeling temporarily 'lobotomized.'
Elizabeth, a 48-year-old musician, told De Koff, "Chantix made me desperately suicidal, just crazy. I joked to my friends that Chantix was the ultimate quit-smoking drug, because when you kill yourself, there's no chance of relapse."
Chantix works by blocking the pathway taken by nicotine to reach those receptors in the brain that release dopamine, the chemical responsible for pleasurable feeling. That's where the hit of pleasure after taking a puff comes from. In theory, if you take away the pleasure, kicking the smoking habit will become easier—especially if you lose your resolve and light up, only to find that smoking does nothing for you. That long-loved feeling of pleasure from smoking is no longer there.
Pfizer has said that not ALL dopamine is shut off, but just enough to take away the pleasure derived from smoking.
Meanwhile, De Koff was becoming uncharacteristically reclusive, and began to wonder whether Chantix, "was zapping my brain's pleasure-delivery system to such a degree that not only did I find no reward in cigarettes, but I also found no reward in socializing, exercising, writing, or any of my usual self-stimulating tricks. I'd pace the floor, sit on the bed, channel surf, pace some more, try to read, but the room had a stale, sinking feeling."
In the end, after more bouts with disturbing and uncharacteristic behavior, De Koff ditched Chantix and went onto the nicotine patch. He chronicled his story in a compelling essay entitled,'This is My Brain on Chantix,' published in New York Magazine February 10th, 2008.
Pfizer reported Chantix sales at $280 million for the fourth quarter of 2007, up from $68 million a year earlier. The FDA has cited 34 actual suicides, and 420 instances of suicidal behavior in the U.S.
Lawyers expect to be busy.
http://cbs11tv.com/consumer/chantix.writer.ny...

It's all about the money!! Big Brother seems to take the rights of smokers away under the pretense of health. They have raised the price of cigarettes, for that would hinder the smoker and hopefully,(for their sake) quit smoking. How foolish and we put these idiots there! It is all about the money. Phillip Morris is one of the biggest contributers to political campaigns, so, there you have your answer! If big brother is so concerned about our health, then why is the Marlboro Man going global?? Because smoking has declined and he is out there rustling up new smokers!! Quit on your on and Pfizer should take their pill and shove it!!

Sandy wrote:

It's all about the money!! Big Brother seems to take the rights of smokers away under the pretense of health. They have raised the price of cigarettes, for that would hinder the smoker and hopefully,(for their sake) quit smoking. How foolish and we put these idiots there! It is all about the money. Phillip Morris is one of the biggest contributers to political campaigns, so, there you have your answer! If big brother is so concerned about our health, then why is the Marlboro Man going global?? Because smoking has declined and he is out there rustling up new smokers!! Quit on your on and Pfizer should take their pill and shove it!!

We make our choices in life, and when the ones we made years ago are no longer the ones we wish to live with, we have to deal with it. There is no magic quit smoking pill just as there is no magic diet pill. Sometimes, the "cure" is truly worse than the condition. Seems to me that is so with Chantix. Remember Fen/Fen, the diet drug that made people drop pounds with little effort? Remember when it started killing those who took it and was taken off the market? Although dying of heart disease would suck, death by suicide must be the worst...both for the victim and for the victim's loved ones left to ask WHY. Chantix is not worth the risk.

Chantix caused me to feel "out of it"
after the 2nd day. That was it for me. I quit using the patch.

Lauren wrote:

Chantix caused me to feel "out of it"
after the 2nd day. That was it for me. I quit using the patch.

You seem to be confused. Chantix is only available as a pill, not a patch.

http://www.chantix.com/content/About_Chantix....

Here is a link to the section of the U.S. Public Health Service document with the recommendations regarding Chantrix (Varenicline):

http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/tobacco/treatin...

"Varenicline
Recommendation: Varenicline is an effective smoking cessation treatment that patients should be encouraged to use.(Strength of Evidence = A) Varenicline is a non-nicotine medication that was approved by the FDA for the treatment of tobacco dependence in 2006. Its mechanism of action is presumed to be due to its partial nicotine receptor agonist and antagonist effects. It is well tolerated in most patients."

Every time you track a 'study' it always goes back to RWJF funding thru grants. Talk about a SCAM for corporate profits!

Have you seen this?
FORBES!
Go ‘Opponents of Ohio Bans’!!!!!!
http://www.forbes.com/prnewswire/feeds/prnews...

KHartman wrote:

<quoted text>
You seem to be confused. Chantix is only available as a pill, not a patch.
http://www.chantix.com/content/About_Chantix....

She simply forgot the comma, meaning "I quit, using the patch."

Please, people. I've been on Chantix since Day 1. The government exists to serve the corporations. If the government says that a drug is safe, it's good enough for .... wait, I'm hearing voices... my poodle is talking to me, it's got a gun, it wants me to shoot myself ... OK, sounds reasonab

KHartman wrote:

Here is a link to the section of the U.S. Public Health Service document with the recommendations regarding Chantrix (Varenicline):
http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/tobacco/treatin...
"Varenicline
Recommendation: Varenicline is an effective smoking cessation treatment that patients should be encouraged to use.(Strength of Evidence = A) Varenicline is a non-nicotine medication that was approved by the FDA for the treatment of tobacco dependence in 2006. Its mechanism of action is presumed to be due to its partial nicotine receptor agonist and antagonist effects. It is well tolerated in most patients."

Here is the link to lawsuits against Chantix and the people's stories of the suffering they endured. I note that your quote says "most" people tolerate the drug well. What does that mean? When millions of prescriptions for the drug are being tossed about, what about the 3% who do not fit that "most" category? One does not know which group he will fit into until he actually takes the drug, and it may be too late to then undo the damage. So, if 5,000,000 have taken Chantix and 3% of them experience suicidal thoughts, become psychotic or homicidal, or actually commit suicide or murder; that would be 1500 raving lunatics roaming the streets. Like the school shooters who took antidepressants and then shot up the campus, that is a risk we should NOT be willing to take. Aside from that, have you ever had experience with someone who has lost a family member to suicide? Dealing with the pain of loss is bad enough. Add to it the agony of knowing it was an F'n drug meant to improve the person's health but instead led to his/her death, that is also a risk no sane person should take.

I may not be for everyone, but I had smoked for 30 years, and if was not for Chantix, I would have not quit, and I am smoke free since Dec 31, 2007....

Sheri wrote:

<quoted text>
She simply forgot the comma, meaning "I quit, using the patch."

I went back and read it again, and I think you're right, Sheri. It makes sense if you just add the comma.

Dan08 wrote:

I may not be for everyone, but I had smoked for 30 years, and if was not for Chantix, I would have not quit, and I am smoke free since Dec 31, 2007....

Keep up the good work!

MANY medications have serious and significant side effects. The risk from Chantix is less than the risk of continuing to smoke. I just finished taking a medication with serious psychological side effects (approx 1 in 5 patients gets them) in order to avoid some significant neurological problems. I did a risk vs. benefit analysis and concluded that I was better off taking the prescribed medication than not. I did have some side effects from it that were unpleasant and I kept my doctor informed every step of the way. He gave me some additional medication to take the edge off of the first medication that I was taking and to help me sleep at night.
IF you continue to smoke, you run a high risk of getting heart disease, lung disease or one of a number of cancers. THAT risk is a little over one in three. Chantix has to be weighed against that risk. If it was not for the significant health risks of continuing to smoke, then there would be no reason to take Chantix.
If you get cancer, one option for treatment is surgery. Actually has a very high risk rate. Another is radiation. Again, a high risk rate. Another is chemotherapy, in which you are putting poisons into your body. Major side effects there. The alternative is to die. Some people choose that alternative, but for many others, the side effects are worth the chance of saving their lives.
You cannot take the side effects of a medication out of context. Birth control pills also have significant side effects, but they do prevent pregnancy, which is statistically lots more dangerous than the pill whether or not the pregnancy is terminated early.
Many people have taken the medication I was on without side effects. I was not one of them, but the treatment was successful and therefore the risks were tolerable.
Lots of smokers here make fun of overweight people and equate smoking to that as far as health risks go. Many morbidly obese people have bariatric surgery which carries significant risks and has a high mortality rate. Again, for them it is a risk vs. benefits decision. I have known 2 people who have had the surgery and they were successful in losing the weight. But before they had the surgery, they had to make a PERSONAL decision based on their own individual needs
I would urge anyone who smokes and wants to quit smoking to explore this option, especially if you have tried other methods and been unsuccessful. By explore, I mean search the web for information and talk to your doctor. If you have any difficulty with the medication, let the doctor know precisely what you are experiencing.
Many of the smokers here on this forum oppose any attempt to quit smoking, whether it is using the patch, the gum, hypnosis or whatever. One thing that you need to remember when you read their posts is that they have NOT successfully quit themselves (quitting and then starting again, even after a few years is not *successful*). Since they have not, listen to those that have and use *their* suggestions.
And yes, I quit over 8 years ago after smoking for almost 20 years. I used the patch and was successful on the third try. And yes, if I was still smoking today, I would definitely consider Chantix as a mechanism for quitting.

i would take Chantix, but i'm afraid it might curb my desire to smoke crack.

KHartman wrote:

<quoted text>
I went back and read it again, and I think you're right, Sheri. It makes sense if you just add the comma.

When you have graded high school students' papers for over 30 years, you learn to recognize what they MEANT to say rather than what their actual text says. Commas are among the most common errors. Either people do not use them all, or they go "comma crazy" Punctuation is really pretty fascinating because, as this post suggests, it can make a big difference in what the person MEANS to say and what they do say.

HUH wrote:

MANY medications have serious and significant side effects. The risk from Chantix is less than the risk of continuing to smoke. I just finished taking a medication with serious psychological side effects (approx 1 in 5 patients gets them) in order to avoid some significant neurological problems. I did a risk vs. benefit analysis and concluded that I was better off taking the prescribed medication than not. I did have some side effects from it that were unpleasant and I kept my doctor informed every step of the way. He gave me some additional medication to take the edge off of the first medication that I was taking and to help me sleep at night.
IF you continue to smoke, you run a high risk of getting heart disease, lung disease or one of a number of cancers. THAT risk is a little over one in three. Chantix has to be weighed against that risk. If it was not for the significant health risks of continuing to smoke, then there would be no reason to take Chantix.
If you get cancer, one option for treatment is surgery. Actually has a very high risk rate. Another is radiation. Again, a high risk rate. Another is chemotherapy, in which you are putting poisons into your body. Major side effects there. The alternative is to die. Some people choose that alternative, but for many others, the side effects are worth the chance of saving their lives.
You cannot take the side effects of a medication out of context. Birth control pills also have significant side effects, but they do prevent pregnancy, which is statistically lots more dangerous than the pill whether or not the pregnancy is terminated early.
Many people have taken the medication I was on without side effects. I was not one of them, but the treatment was successful and therefore the risks were tolerable.
Lots of smokers here make fun of overweight people and equate smoking to that as far as health risks go. Many morbidly obese people have bariatric surgery which carries significant risks and has a high mortality rate. Again, for them it is a risk vs. benefits decision. I have known 2 people who have had the surgery and they were successful in losing the weight. But before they had the surgery, they had to make a PERSONAL decision based on their own individual needs
I would urge anyone who smokes and wants to quit smoking to explore this option, especially if you have tried other methods and been unsuccessful. By explore, I mean search the web for information and talk to your doctor. If you have any difficulty with the medication, let the doctor know precisely what you are experiencing.
Many of the smokers here on this forum oppose any attempt to quit smoking, whether it is using the patch, the gum, hypnosis or whatever. One thing that you need to remember when you read their posts is that they have NOT successfully quit themselves (quitting and then starting again, even after a few years is not *successful*). Since they have not, listen to those that have and use *their* suggestions.
And yes, I quit over 8 years ago after smoking for almost 20 years. I used the patch and was successful on the third try. And yes, if I was still smoking today, I would definitely consider Chantix as a mechanism for quitting.

If the risk from Chantix were not so immediate and permanent, then I would agree with you. If there were a test that would reveal whether or not Chantix might lead one to suicide, then I would agree with you. Suicide is the most senseless and the most difficult death for families to grieve. Sorry, not worth it.

Dan08 wrote:

I may not be for everyone, but I had smoked for 30 years, and if was not for Chantix, I would have not quit, and I am smoke free since Dec 31, 2007....

How did you do it? Been on Chantix since day one and still smoke about two cigarettes a day. Is this working or am I fooling myself?

Cyanide might be quicker, but no repeat customers LOL