Quit smoking drugs and chemo - 1293768

louiesmadhouse76
Posts:3

Can quit smoking drugs such as champix be used at same time as chemo treatments.?

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Reply # - January 12, 2018, 09:47 AM

catdander
Posts:

Hi Louiesmadhouse,

That's a lousy question to have to ask and I'm so sorry you do. I'm going to ask our Oncology Pharmacist to field this question. If you gave specific chemo meds the answer would be more straight forward than, "it depends on what your taking".

I hope for the best of luck in quitting smoking. For a bit of incentive a person really does feel and do a lot better with treatment when they aren't smoking. My husband and I both smoked before he was diagnosed and I'm so glad we were able to stop.

Janine

Reply # - January 12, 2018, 01:38 PM

dr walko
Posts: 102

Hi Louiesmadhouse,

Chantix (varenicline) itself does not interact directly with other medications, though there have been some effects related to changes in nicotine levels in the body that may require dose adjustments of some drugs like blood thinners.

I think the biggest thing I would be worried about is the side effects of the Chantix with the side effects of the chemotherapy (which differs related to chemotherapy). I would make sure that your medical team is aware so both can be managed appropriately...and continued positive re-enforcement can increase the success of quitting smoking too.

Bottom line, in general they can be used together but always make sure the oncology team is aware.

Best wishes,
Dr. Walko

Reply # - January 13, 2018, 02:23 PM

louiesmadhouse76
Posts: 3

Thankyou for the information in Regards to champix, i couldn't find any through the web.
Im not on any chemotherapy as yet as still in stages of being diagnosed properly.
Helping myself out with the quiting before we start anything as well as becoming healthier.

Reply # - January 14, 2018, 08:47 AM

JimC
Posts: 2753

Hi Louiesmadhouse,

I'm glad that Dr. Walko was able to help (as she invariably does!)

It may depend on how your search engine works, but since Champix is called Chantix in the U.S., in future searches you may want to add searches for Chantix so that you get access to all of the literature from the many U.S. academic institutions.

Best,

JimC
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Reply # - January 14, 2018, 09:13 AM

catdander
Posts:

Hi Louiesmadhouse,

No matter where you end up with the biopsy it's never a bad time to quit. Best of luck.

Janine

Reply # - January 15, 2018, 09:26 AM

dr walko
Posts: 102

Louiesmadhouse,

Searching for drug information online can be challenging, especially since some drugs go by different brand names even within the same country!

The generic name for Chantix is: varenicline
Searching by this can sometimes be more helpful, but you can get a lot of non-specific information too. Here is the link to the package insert that is pretty overwhelming but is where I start to look for drug interaction information:
http://labeling.pfizer.com/ShowLabeling.aspx?id=557

Best wishes and please don't hesitate to ask if you have more questions,
CancerGrace is wonderful team of experienced cheerleaders to help you through these hard times.
Chris

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