September 29, 2011   A pill developed in Bulgaria during the Soviet era shows promise for helping millions of smokers cheaply and safely kick the habit, according to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine. Research suggests that cytisine can triple smokers’ chances of being off cigarettes after one year compared with taking a dummy pill. The drug is now used just in Eastern Europe, where smokers usually take the pill for three or four weeks. Generic versions cost as little as $5 to $17 a month, compared with about $100 for an eight-week supply of nicotine patches or about $300 for a 12-week supply of Chantix -  common treatments in rich countries to help smokers quit. It has been sold in Eastern Europe for over 40 years, and there are plans to begin marketing the drug cheaply in developing countries like China and India. It could become a new weapon to combat smoking in poor counties, but it is unclear whether it will ever reach the market in the U.S. or Western Europe without larger trials and a big pharmaceutical company to pay for them.

For More Information:

http://xfinity.comcast.net/articles/news-health/20110928/EU.MED.Quit.Smoking.Drug/