Communicating About Nicotine Reduction in Cigarettes

Georgia State University

Status: Enrolling

Conditions: Cigarette Use; Tobacco Products; Smoking Behavior

Treatments: Behavioral: Control message; Behavioral: VLNC messages

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other; NIH

Identifiers

NCT06787937

H25318

R01CA239308 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Details and patient eligibility

About

The goal of this clinical trial is to learn how a messaging campaign about reduced nicotine cigarettes and policy, combined with the use of very low nicotine cigarettes (VLNCs), affects smoking behavior and attitudes among adult smokers. The study also aims to assess the efficacy of the messages in different populations, including smokers with past-month serious psychological distress (SPD), low socioeconomic status (SES), and those in neither category.

The primary hypothesis is: exposure to messages in combination with VLNC use will lead to less cigarettes use compared to VLNCs without messages.

Researchers will compare: The effects of receiving VLNCs with messages (treatment group) to receiving VLNCs without messages (control group).

Participants will: Complete a baseline survey and be randomly assigned to one of two groups: treatment (VLNCs + messages) or control (VLNCs only). Attend weekly study visits for surveys, breath samples, and receive supply of VLNCs , either with or without the messaging campaign. Complete brief daily surveys through text messages.

Full description

This is a randomized, open label, controlled, two-site study to test the efficacy of a messaging campaign about reduced nicotine cigarettes and policy in combination with the use of very low nicotine cigarettes (VLNCs). Smokers from three groups: with past-month serious psychological distress (SPD), with low socioeconomic status (SES), and in neither category will complete a 1-week baseline and a 4-week study; they will be randomized to one of two conditions:

1. treatment condition, where participants receive VLNCs during weekly visits and are exposed to messages about VLNCs and reduced nicotine policy.
2. control condition, where participants receive VLNCs without exposure to messages.

Message intervention: Messages about VLNCs and reduced nicotine policy will be professionally developed as full-color inserts (small leaflets that will be inserted into cigarette packs given to participants), print ads, and videos. At each weekly visit, participants will see 3-6 messages about VLNCs and reduced nicotine policy (in the treatment condition) or, in the control condition, 3-6 messages unrelated to tobacco (ads for bottled water, which are neutral messages that are unlikely to affect tobacco-related perceptions or behavior). Participants in the treatment conditions will also have inserts in their VLNC cigarette packs.

Baseline visit: Participants will complete a baseline survey, provide expired breath Carbon Monoxide (CO) sample, and receive a 1-week supply of the study cigarettes (full nicotine).

Randomization visit: Participants will be randomized into either the treatment (VLNCs + messages) or control (VLNCs only) condition. Participants will complete questionnaires, provide an expired CO sample, and receive a 14-day supply of VLNCs (either with or without the messages, according to the assigned condition).

Weekly visits: Starting one week after the randomization visit, participants will complete 4 weekly visits at their designated study site. At each visit, they will complete questionnaires, provide an expired CO sample, and receive a 14-day supply of VLNCs (with or without the messages, according to the assigned condition).

Daily logs: Throughout the baseline and 4 weekly study periods, participants will receive daily text messages with links to brief online surveys.

Enrollment: 1,230 estimated patients

Sex: All

Ages: 21+ years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Age 21+ years
• Current smoker (self-report as having smoked 100 cigarettes in their lifetime and currently smoking on 27+ days out of past 30, expired breath carbon monoxide [CO] ≥6ppm to assess regular smoking)
• Can speak, read, and write in English
• Available for period of study
• Willing to try novel research cigarettes

Exclusion criteria

• Pregnancy or lactation
• Member of the same household as a study subject
• Unwilling to use research cigarettes as part of the trial

Trial design

Primary purpose: Prevention

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

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1,230 participants in 2 patient groups

VLNC with message campaign

Experimental group

Description:

Participants in this arm will receive VLNCs during weekly visits and be exposed to messaging about VLNCs and reduced nicotine policy through multiple formats, including inserts placed in cigarette packs, printed advertisements, and videos presented during weekly visits.

Treatment:

Behavioral: VLNC messages

VLNC only

Other group

Description:

Participants in this arm will receive VLNCs during weekly visits but will not receive any messaging related to cigarettes or reduced nicotine policy. Instead, they will only be exposed to control messages, such as advertisements for bottled water, during weekly visits.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Control message