NHS to Roll out ‘Improved’ Anti-Smoking Pill

A general view of staff on a NHS hospital ward on Jan. 18, 2023. Jeff Moore/PA

NHS England has announced the roll-out of an “improved” anti-smoking pill to help tens of thousands in England to quit smoking.

The daily pill called varenicline is said to reduce nicotine cravings and block their effect on the brain. The drug works as well as vapes to help people stop smoking and is more effective than nicotine-replacement gum or patches, NHS England said on Tuesday.

Varenicline is a prescription-only medicine, which means patients will need to see their GP or an NHS stop-smoking service to get it.

Another smoking cessation pill was previously used in the UK under the brand name Champix. It was withdrawn from the market in 2021 over a discovered impurity.

Both the Medicines Health and Regulatory Authority and the European Medicines Agency found all Champix batches to contain above-acceptable levels of N-nitroso-varenicline, a substance classified as probable human carcinogen.

Possible side effects of varenicline include nausea, headaches, upset stomach and trouble sleeping, sometimes with vivid dreams.

The relaunched drug has now been approved as safe by the MHRA. Pharmaceutical company Teva UK will provide the new generic version of the treatment to the NHS.

Impact on NHS, Economy

NHS Chief Executive Amanda Pritchard called the drug a “game-changer for people who want to quit smoking.”

She also said that it will help shifting the NHS care further towards prevention, which aligns the government’s 10-year health plan.

“Smoking remains one of the biggest public health issues facing the NHS and has devastating impacts on the body—from the lungs, to the heart, blood and brain, while also increasing risk of cancer, diabetes and stroke.

“Alongside supporting the Government’s ambition to create the first smoke-free generation, we are giving current smokers the tools they need to quit—with proven treatment options like this, alongside specialist care, helping to save thousands of lives and the NHS millions of pounds in treatment costs,” said Pritchard.

The use of varenicline has been estimated to help over 85,000 people quit smoking each year. In the next five years, NHS England said the treatment could prevent up to 9,500 smoking-related deaths. The move also comes as part of the NHS drive to deliver effective treatment options for patients and save taxpayers over £500 million.

The drug will come as an addition to the NHS Stop Smoking Services in England. Meanwhile, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is also reviewing another treatment—cytisine—as a stop-smoking intervention.

NICE analysis has previously shown that for every £1 spent on the previously branded pill Champix alongside behavioural support, £1.65 was saved through preventing smoking-relating illnesses and hospitalisations.

Support for Current Smokers

According to NHS England, around 16 percent of all hospital admissions for respiratory diseases in 2022-23 were estimated to be related to smoking.

Smoking also caused 8 percent of all admissions for cancers and 7 percent of admissions for cardiovascular diseases.

Health charity leaders welcomed the NHS move to introduce varenicline as a treatment option, alongside the introduction of the Tobacco and Vapes Bill to Parliament.

The legislation includes measures to phase out the sale of tobacco products to anyone aged 15 or younger this year and ban vape advertising and sponsorship.

“While the Tobacco and Vapes Bill will protect younger generations from the harms caused by this deadly addiction, the hundreds of thousands of current smokers who want to give up must also be supported. It is incredibly difficult to quit smoking without help,” said Henry Gregg, director of external affairs at Asthma + Lung UK.

Cancer Research UK said that the new treatment, along with funding for cessation services, will help more people stop smoking.

“Around 160 cases of cancer are caused by tobacco every day in the UK, so it’s essential that action is taken to prevent people from smoking in the first place,” said Ian Walker, Cancer Research UK’s executive director of policy.