Beasley, Allen, Crow, Methvin, Portis & Miles, P.C.

Health Canada has received 818 reports of adverse side effects caused by the smoking cessation drug Chantix (marketed in Canada and elsewhere as Champix) since it first became available to Canadians nearly two years ago. The majority of complaints concerned psychiatric problems. Chantix is known to cause or exacerbate a spectrum of psychiatric and physical reactions, including moodiness, depression, violent behavior, lack of sleep, blackouts, and suicidal thought and actions.

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The Canadian Press reports that Health Canada, the government department responsible for Canada’s public health policies, is currently working with Pfizer to strengthen the warnings for the smoking cessation drug Chantix. Chantix is sold in Canada and elsewhere overseas under the name Champix.

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Chantix has to be one of the most bipolar prescription drugs ever created. Every day, a search for the latest Chantix news digs up blogs written by fans of the smoking cessation drug, who often tout it as a miracle or a blessing in their struggle to become nonsmokers. Yet other users liken it to a nightmare or a curse, citing wild mood swings, disturbing dreams, and uncharacteristic thoughts of suicide.

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Researchers conducting long term studies of smoking and cancer are impressed by the latest statistics, which show cancer rates falling among both men and women for the first time since the government started keeping track of long-term trends. The favorable data is especially impressive, given the country’s aging population and considering that the number of new lung cancer cases in both sexes grew by nearly one percent each year from 1995 to 1999.

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The number of bloggers out there writing about their personal experiences with Chantix and documenting, for the world to see, the musings of a mind tortured by nicotine withdrawal, seems to be proliferating even as prescriptions for the smoking cessation drug decline. Now it appears that a new genre in world of Chantix information has emerged: the Comical Side Effect.

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By now we know that Chantix is dangerous for some people who use the drug, but mounting evidence suggests that people who don’t use it may also be harmed. Since Chantix became available for smoking cessation in August of 2006, the FDA has received a steady influx of reports connecting the drug to traffic accidents. Moreover, while the medical community and the media are focused on the negative psychiatric effects that some Chantix users experience, researchers now believe that the non-psychiatric effects may be worse.

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Many medical researchers find little surprise that Chantix has been linked to higher than normal rates of depression and suicide. Varenicline (the chemical name of Pfizer’s smoking cessation drug) goes to work directly in the brain by targeting certain receptors and simulating that feeling of having already smoked – that “full” feeling smokers feel after they’ve lit up one or two. Other pharmaceuticals that go to work directly in the brain include antidepressants, some of which have also been linked to behavioral problems and suicide.

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Smoking cessation today isn’t as simple as it used to be. Years ago, smokers had a couple of choices: cold turkey or hypnotherapy. Then, as awareness about the dangers of smoking grew, thanks to efforts by the government and independent health groups, so too did the number of smoking cessation aids. First came prescription-only nicotine gum, which was quickly succeeded by a procession-soon-to-be-explosion of over-the-counter therapeutic nicotine — gum, patches, lozenges. In 1997, the FDA approved bupropion (a.k.a. Zyban/Wellbutrin) for use in smoking cessation. Meanwhile, all sorts of gadgets and gimmicks flooded the market. And then came Chantix.

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Responding to widespread pressure from many congressmen, veteran’s organizations, and the general public, the Veterans Administration announced today that it would directly notify all of its veterans currently using Pfizer’s new smoking cessation drug Chantix. The number of veterans on Chantix is approximately 32,000.

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On Monday ABC News and The Washington Times broke a report on the Veterans Administration testing Pfizer’s smoking cessation drug Chantix on 140 veterans suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). The VA administered the drug to the soldiers without warning them about months-old discoveries linking Chantix to a range of neuropsychiatric behavior and illness, including depression, loss of sleep, vivid dreams, suicidal thoughts, and suicidal actions.

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