Nearly 7 in 10 American Doctors Mistakenly Believe Nicotine Causes Lung Cancer, Thwarting Efforts to Help The Country's More Than 50 Million Smokers Quit

Global survey of more than 15,000 physicians in 11 countries uncovers need for further education

The Foundation for a Smoke-Free World invites researchers to propose new analysis & educational programs

• On average, 67% of U.S. doctors mistakenly believe nicotine causes lung cancer and 66%-75% mistakenly believe nicotine is a direct cause of a range of illness such as atherosclerosis, birth defects and more.
• 93% of doctors in the U.S. at least moderately agree that helping patients quit smoking is a priority.
• Encouragingly, 81% of American physicians surveyed are at least moderately interested in additional cessation and tobacco harm reduction training.

NEW YORK, Sept. 20, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Nearly 7 in 10 U.S. doctors mistakenly attribute the negative health consequences of smoking to nicotine, directly jeopardizing advancements made in helping smokers quit, a survey funded by a Foundation for a Smoke-Free World grant has found.

Sermo, an independent platform and leader in actionable healthcare professional insights, surveyed more than 15,000 doctors online in 11 countries (China, Germany, Greece, India, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Japan, South Africa, United Kingdom, and the United States).

The survey found that while 93% of doctors in the U.S. at least moderately agree helping patients quit smoking is a priority, it is troubling that 66%-75% mistakenly believe nicotine causes a range of illnesses from lung cancer and COPD to atheroscelrosis and birth defects.

These results raise concerns about U.S. doctors' ability to equip patients who smoke with the most accurate and effective advice on how to quit. This misperception could account for the fact that 5 in 10 U.S. doctors are not aware of training opportunities focused on smoking reduction or cessation.

"It is imperative that doctors get the proper training to learn the facts about nicotine and tobacco harm reduction options that can help their smoking patients quit," said Dr. Muhammad Ahmed, Director of Health and Science Research, Foundation for a Smoke-Free World. "With more than 7 million smokers dying annually from smoking-related diseases worldwide, many lives can be saved if doctors become more knowledgeable about the cessation tools available." 

Dr. Jed Rose, President and CEO of Rose Research Center (RRC) and co-inventor of the nicotine patch, said, "Patients look to doctors for trusted health advice. Therefore, it is vital that doctors provide accurate, current advice to smokers about the health risks of smoking cigarettes compared to using products that deliver nicotine without combustion."

RRC is a research facility based in Raleigh, NC that specializes in tobacco dependence research, including research on smokers, addiction, smoking cessation, tobacco harm reduction and the use of other tobacco products. RRC is a Foundation for a Smoke-Free World grantee.

Dr. Rose was a panelist on the Doctors' Survey webinar, where he joined other tobacco control experts to discuss the survey results and their impact on smoking cessation and harm reduction efforts. The webinar can be accessed at www.tinyurl.com/Doctors-Survey-Webinar. 

Even though there is near unanimity in the global healthcare community that combustion, more than nicotine, is what leads to the negative health consequences from smoking, the Doctors' Survey uncovered that in United States:

• 67% of doctors on average at least moderately agree that nicotine causes lung, and 69% at least moderately agree nicotine causes bladder cancer and head/neck/gastric cancer;
• 75% of doctors in the U.S. on average at least moderately agree that atherosclerosis is caused by nicotine; and
• 66% of U.S. doctors on average at least moderately agree that COPD is caused by nicotine.

Although these misperceptions are alarming, 85% of physicians surveyed in the U.S. have had at least some training on smoking cessation, with 81% at least moderately interested in further training focused on smoking cessation and tobacco harm reduction.

The survey, which was conducted in 2022, also found that while doctors' conversations with American patients who smoke focus on the health benefits of cutting down or quitting (74%) and the health risks of continuing (74%), a comparatively smaller number of physicians (65%) recommend cutting down on the amount of smokable tobacco products.

The Doctors' Survey findings for the U.S. can be accessed on the Foundation's website at www.smokefreeworld.org/doctorssurvey/united-states/.

The Foundation for a Smoke-Free World invites researchers to submit proposals to further analyze the Doctors' Survey findings and propose programs that would help improve doctors' fluency about smoking cessation and tobacco harm reduction. Researchers interested in submitting a proposal should contact [email protected].

About the Foundation for a Smoke-Free World
The Foundation for a Smoke-Free World is an independent, U.S. nonprofit 501(c)(3) grantmaking organization with the purpose of improving global health by ending smoking in this generation. The Foundation supports its mission through three broad categories of work: Health and Science Research; Agricultural Diversification; and Industry Transformation. Funded by annual gifts from PMI Global Services Inc. ("PMI"), the Foundation is independent from PMI and operates in a manner that ensures its independence from any commercial entity. For more information about the Foundation, please visit www.smokefreeworld.org. 

Contact: Laziza Lambert, Actum LLC, [email protected], (913) 709-5317

SOURCE Foundation for a Smoke-Free World