Nancy Rigotti, MD
Nancy Rigotti, MD, is the Director of the Tobacco Research and Treatment Center (TRTC) at Massachusetts General Hospital. The Center provides services to help inpatients, outpatients, employees, and community members quit smoking.
The Center also conducts research to identify effective smoking cessation treatments for smokers who are seen in a variety of health care settings.
The best way to quit smoking is to combine FDA-approved stop smoking medications with support to change smoking behavior†. Medications and coaching each work individually, but combining them is more effective than either one alone.
Medications help smokers quit by reducing cravings for cigarettes and by controlling symptoms of nicotine withdrawal, such as irritability, restlessness, anxiety, and trouble concentrating.
By reducing these symptoms, you reduce discomfort and increase your chances of success.
A trained tobacco treatment specialist can help you understand your smoking patterns, offer practical advice and support for quitting, and help you choose a smoking cessation medication.
Smokers find it very helpful to check in with a tobacco treatment specialist several times as they work on quitting.
Quitting smoking is associated with a lower risk for lung disease, heart disease, cancer, and stroke†. No matter how old you are or how many years you’ve smoked, you can lengthen your life and improve your quality of life by quitting smoking now. It’s never too late.
If you are a Partners HealthCare employee, contact the Partners in Helping You Quit (PiHQ) study at 617-724-2205 or PiHQ@partners.org to learn more about tobacco treatment coaching and smoking cessation medication available at no cost for employees with Partners HealthCare health insurance.
If you are a Massachusetts resident, you can find support to quit smoking at 1-800-QUIT-NOW.
†https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/fact_sheets/cessation/quitting/index.htm
Research Your Resolution
Do you have goals for improving your health in the New Year? This month, investigators from the Mass General Research Institute are discussing the science behind some common New Year’s resolutions, and offering tips and advice based on their research into exercise, diet, healthy aging, heart health, and much more.
Massachusetts General Hospital is home to the largest hospital-based research program in the United States, a community of more than 10,000 people working across 30 departments, centers and institutes. The Mass General Research Institute works to support, guide and promote these research initiatives.
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