Since 2006, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center’s Tobacco Treatment Program (TTP) has been serving MD Anderson patients and employees by providing tobacco cessation services to those seeking to quit or modify their tobacco use. Soon, the institution’s tobacco cessation expertise will be available to any health care professional interested in treating tobacco users.
MD Anderson recently was accredited to offer official training and certification by The Association for the Treatment of Tobacco Use and Dependence, an organization of providers dedicated to the promotion of and increased access to evidence-based tobacco treatment. With this designation, MD Anderson’s Certified Tobacco Treatment Training Program (CTTTP) becomes one of only 15 accredited programs in the country, and the only one in Texas.
There is a particular need for such programs in Texas, where current smoking rates remain above 15 percent. Each year in the state, an estimated 28,000 adults die each year from tobacco use, which remains the single largest preventable cause of death in the U.S.
“Our program will offer the highest quality tobacco-treatment specialist training using the latest evidence-based tobacco cessation research and treatment strategies,” says Paul Cinciripini, Ph.D., chair of Behavioral Science and director of MD Anderson’s Tobacco Treatment Program. “The training will include knowledge gained from MD Anderson investigator-initiated research trials and highly specialized clinical experience.”
Interdisciplinary health care providers and public health professionals will be trained to deliver a high-intensity, evidence-based, cognitive-behavioral treatment for nicotine dependence. This represents an expansion of the TTP approach, which was designed to leverage MD Anderson’s expertise and increase capacity in order to provide best-practice cessation services in Texas and beyond.
“We follow an evidence-based approach combined with our many years of testing and experience, which represents an effective balance producing an innovative and cutting edge clinical approach” says Maher Karam-Hage, M.D., professor of Behavioral Science and associate medical director of the TTP. “Unique to our program is our ability to share specific expertise in working with cancer patients and those with mental health disorders.”
Faculty and professionals from the TTP will provide clinical expertise in smoking cessation counseling and pharmacotherapy, and the EndTobacco program staff will offer their expertise in programmatic implementation and logistical support.
The EndTobacco program is an initiative of MD Anderson’s cancer prevention and control platform, which is part of the institution’s Moon Shots Program™, an ambitious effort to reduce cancer deaths by more rapidly developing and implementing advances in prevention, early detection and treatment based on scientific discoveries.
With successful implementation, Cinciripini hopes not only to train providers in tobacco cessation, but to inspire trainees to become tobacco cessation champions for their organizations and communities in order to continue making progress in reducing tobacco use nationwide.
The inaugural CTTTP training course of 4 days will be held at MD Anderson from August 15 to 18, 2017, with additional course scheduled quarterly. Find registration information available at www.mdanderson.org/conferences
This article originally appeared on MD Anderson’s Cancer Frontline blog
RELATED NEWS

UT Physicians opens PM&R clinic in Southwest Houston

UTHealth Stomp Out Stroke Festival April 28
Social Posts
@bigdock Great news! Sending you our best wishes.
If you love citrus, you will really love these recipes with options from salad to stir-fry.
Women with darker skin can get #skincancer, too. Our Dr. Susan Chon shares what you should know: https://t.co/02BBg4YNmw @thirdAGE #endcancer
Overcoming #cancer shapes 3 MD Anderson employees’ perspectives: https://t.co/cUt1DJj9F1 #endcancer https://t.co/FmZgRjUw0b
Legacy is planting seeds in a garden you never get to see. Tonight we’re celebrating the legacy of @UHValentiSchool. Thank you @seguntheprogram for being MC and @jdbalart for the Impact Award https://t.co/tBmWEylyiU
Entering a new era: learn more about TMC3, the new translational research campus. https://t.co/pCLaez3zts
Be a part of the nation's largest autism research study. Get in-person help with signing up for SPARK for Autism at the Houston Museum of Natural Science during their sensory friendly event April 28. http://bit.ly/SPARKevents
An Army Veteran confronts his own trauma with a camera https://t.co/qoMYFKKZjq via @nytimes
In this interview with @ktrhnews, Dr. James Langabeer of @UTHealth_SBMI and @UTEmergencyMed discusses the decline in prescriptions for addictive painkillers: https://t.co/CMlYcJngA4
At 10 months old, David was so weak and behind in development that he couldn't even sit up. But now the bubbly 4-year-old is growing fast and swinging baseball bats. Read about his miraculous journey w/@UTPhysicians CARE Clinic. https://t.co/3chQLYaeex #ManyFacesOfUTHealth https://t.co/LZptSVgsDY
RT @UTCVSurgery: Another great free medical screening service brought to you by @UTPhysicians! Check out Dr Stuart Harlin on this morning’s…
Veterans serving Veterans: Researchers who served. This @usairforce Veteran volunteered as a pararescueman in Vietnam, and then went on to serve others with a career in orthopedic research. https://t.co/2NQHhSTmQx via @VeteransHealth on #VAntagePoint
At 10 months old, David was so weak and behind in development that he couldn't even sit up. But now the bubbly 4-year-old is growing fast and already swinging baseball bats. Read about his miraculous journey with the UT Physicians CARE Clinic. #ManyFacesOfUTHealth
Today’s #VeteranOfTheDay is Navy Veteran Willard Knockum Jr. Willard served from 1964 to 1971 during the Vietnam War. Willard joined the Navy in 1964. He was trained in counterinsurgency and survival surveillance reconnaissance and weapons at the Marine Base Camp in Pendleton, California. He became a Boatswain Mate, a role that fulfills a variety of tasks such as lookout duty, training and directing maintenance duties, damage control, operating and maintaining equipment and more. Willard also participated in North Atlantic Treaty Organization and anti-submarine warfare exercises. Willard served on the destroyer USS Fox 779 before he deployed to Vietnam in 1969 during the Vietnam War where he served in Saigon and Dong Tam. He was assigned to Military Assistance Command, a group of assault river boats that patrolled hostile waters around the Army Base at Dong Tam. For his service, Willard was awarded the Vietnam Service Medal and the Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal. Willard now lives in Folsom, Louisiana as a retired United Postal Service mail handler. Thank you for your service, Willard!
Today’s #VeteranOfTheDay is @USNavy Veteran Willard Knockum, Jr https://t.co/7lDPTdSI86