Preoperative Nicotine Cessation for Women With Breast Cancer Recommended for Reconstruction

June 22, 2026 updated by: University of Florida

Close to 20% of cancer patients currently use nicotine products. Nicotine use in breast cancer patients is associated with poorer overall outcomes, including worsened survival and increased surgical complications. Nicotine cessation is rarely addressed in breast cancer patients at the time of diagnosis and may be a missed opportunity to optimize patient outcomes. Patients that use nicotine products are not offered reconstruction at time of mastectomy or oncoplastics at the time of lumpectomy, which can be emotionally distressing in women with breast cancer. Reconstruction could be an additional motivating factor in nicotine cessation success.

This study aims to evaluate the feasibility of a nicotine cessation program designed by Area Health Education Center (AHEC) in the target population. The study is designed to test the acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of a formal nicotine cessation program in women actively using nicotine products with breast cancer recommended for reconstructive or oncoplastics surgery.

Study Overview

Status

Recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

20

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Florida
      • Gainesville, Florida, United States, 32608
        • Recruiting
        • University of Florida
        • Contact:
        • Principal Investigator:
          • Christiana Shaw, MD

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Adults ≥ 18 years of age and ≤ 80 years of age.
  • Women who are diagnosed with Stage 0 - 3 breast cancer confirmed by biopsy
  • Women who have been recommended to have reconstruction at time of mastectomy or oncoplastics at time of lumpectomy
  • Participants who actively use nicotine products defined as any self-reported nicotine use within the past month
  • Participant agrees to comply with all the study-related procedures.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Patients not eligible for reconstruction or oncoplastics for other reasons including BMI>35 or inflammatory breast cancer or based on surgeon discretion.
  • Prisoners or subjects who are involuntarily incarcerated, or subjects who are compulsorily detained for treatment of either a psychiatric or physical illness.
  • Patients unable to complete the sessions because of language, travel or technology barriers
  • Patients already actively participating in another cessation program
  • Patients who are pregnant.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Nicotine cessation program
Behavioral: Nicotine cessation program
Participants will complete up to 4 sessions of a nicotine cessation program over either 12-24 weeks if receiving neoadjuvant therapy (i.e. chemotherapy or hormonal/endocrine therapy) prior to surgery or over 4-6 weeks if not receiving neoadjuvant therapy prior to surgery. Each session will be 30-60 minutes long. Participants receiving neoadjuvant therapy will also be eligible for nicotine replacement therapy; however, it must be stopped 6 weeks before surgery.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Feasibility
Time Frame: 12-24 weeks (if receiving neoadjuvant therapy prior to surgery) or 4-6 weeks (if not receiving neoadjuvant therapy prior to surgery)
Determine the feasibility of the nicotine cessation program used in this study, as measured by subject participation in at least one program session after study enrollment.
12-24 weeks (if receiving neoadjuvant therapy prior to surgery) or 4-6 weeks (if not receiving neoadjuvant therapy prior to surgery)

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Acceptability
Time Frame: 10-30 weeks
Determine the acceptability of the nicotine cessation program used in this study, as measured by participant surveys administered at baseline, at completion of the nicotine cessation program sessions, and at 6 weeks postoperatively.
10-30 weeks
Preliminary efficacy
Time Frame: 10-30 weeks
Determine the preliminary efficacy of the nicotine cessation program used in this study, as measured by participant surveys administered at baseline, at completion of the nicotine cessation program sessions, and at 6 weeks postoperatively.
10-30 weeks
Long-term impact on nicotine cessation
Time Frame: 12 months postoperatively
Determine the long-term impact on nicotine cessation of the nicotine cessation program used in this study, as measured by a participant survey administered 12 months postoperatively.
12 months postoperatively
Surgical procedure
Time Frame: At surgery
Determine the surgical procedure each participant underwent following completion of the nicotine cessation program, including if the participant had either reconstruction or oncoplastics at the time of this surgery.
At surgery
Patient engagement
Time Frame: 12-24 weeks (if receiving neoadjuvant therapy prior to surgery) or 4-6 weeks (if not receiving neoadjuvant therapy prior to surgery)
Determine patient engagement, as measured by number of program sessions completed and which program sessions were completed.
12-24 weeks (if receiving neoadjuvant therapy prior to surgery) or 4-6 weeks (if not receiving neoadjuvant therapy prior to surgery)
Short-term impact on nicotine cessation
Time Frame: 10 days prior to surgery
Determine the short-term impact on nicotine cessation of the nicotine cessation program used in this study, as measured by cotinine levels prior to surgery.
10 days prior to surgery

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

University of Florida

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Christiana Shaw, MD, University of Florida

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

November 14, 2024

Primary Completion (Estimated)

March 1, 2028

Study Completion (Estimated)

March 1, 2029

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

June 11, 2024

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

June 11, 2024

First Posted (Actual)

June 17, 2024

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

June 25, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

June 22, 2026

Last Verified

June 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • UF-BRE-013
  • IRB202401102 (Other Identifier: University of Florida)

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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