Letter to the Cancer Society

[Duckies]

I sent the following to the ACS via ( ACS :: Contact Us )

Feel free to use as appropriate. Adding your own story on why you want them to back off of their black/white all-or-nothing-approach will help.

I am writing to let you all know that for the first year in 6 years, I will not be participating in the Relay for Life. I will not be walking, I will not be fundraising and I have informed the 2 teams that I co-chair that they will need to find another volunteer.

The reasoning for this is because I have just quit smoking cigarettes after almost 30 years of being hooked on them. How you ask?

Well, not by the NRTs that didn't work. Not by the Chantix that rewired my brain and almost cost me my job, but through the use of e-cigarettes, or as I like to call them, Personal Vaporizers. Within hours of my first "vape", I tried to smoke a regular cigarette and couldn't. You read that right -- I could not finish it.

It has now been 10 days and I have not smoked a single cigarette thanks to this low nicotine vaporizor.

It seems that you all would prefer that I go back to smoking given your support of banning these devices outright.

Well, you can just do without this volunteer. It will be nice to have a few weeks of my life back every year to enjoy smoke free.

Recommendation on why this is effective from here: http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/fo...-important-email-fda-supplier.html#post173311

Bill Godshall of Smokefree Pennsylvania is an ally and I for one am thrilled to see him join this communuty (his introductory post is upwards in the same thread).

Thanks.

 

[Vapor Pete]

Hey Duckies,
Awsome letter! Maybe it'll end up on the same "DO NOT REPLY... ANOTHER E-CIG USER COMPLAINING ABOUT OUR ONE SIDED, NON-SENSICAL SUPPORT OF A BAN FOR A PRODUCT THAT HAS NO CANCER CAUSING AGENTS LIKE THAT IN TOBACCO CIGARETTES BUT BECAUSE WE ARE THE AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY IF IT LOOKS LIKE A CIGARETTE IT MUST BE JUST AS BAD" as my letter did. Im not being sarcastic, sorry if it comes across that way. I am just ....... Sorry for my tone.
My best,
-VP

 

[Duckies]

Heya VP,

Yep -- we are but small fish in a big pond. However, it DID feel good and I was a co chair that was raising over $100k/year for ACS. Drop in the bucket, but maybe (maybe!) it will garner at least some attention or moderate consideration.

Now, back to the supplier forums for more hording.

 

[Steph2323]

I sent the following to the ACS via ( ACS :: Contact Us )

Feel free to use as appropriate. Adding your own story on why you want them to back off of their black/white all-or-nothing-approach will help.


Recommendation on why this is effective from here: http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/fo...-important-email-fda-supplier.html#post173311

Bill Godshall of Smokefree Pennsylvania is an ally and I for one am thrilled to see him join this communuty (his introductory post is upwards in the same thread).

Thanks.

Great letter. I will also use the same approach and write to them. Thanks
Stephanie

 

[TropicalBob]

That's an excellent letter, Duckies. It won't take too many of those for word to spread .. "what's up with the electronic cigarette opposition?" Questioning a flawed position is the essential first step to changing it. Congratulations.

 

[Steph2323]

I sent the following to the ACS via ( ACS :: Contact Us )

Feel free to use as appropriate. Adding your own story on why you want them to back off of their black/white all-or-nothing-approach will help.


Recommendation on why this is effective from here: http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/fo...-important-email-fda-supplier.html#post173311

Bill Godshall of Smokefree Pennsylvania is an ally and I for one am thrilled to see him join this communuty (his introductory post is upwards in the same thread).

Thanks.

Thanks Duckies. I used the same format that you provided and personalized it. Sent to ACS and ALA so far tonight. Anyone can use mine also to plug in your own info
Stephanie

Hell0:
I am writing this letter because I will no longer be able to support your organization in anyway. I will not contribute when friends are fundraising for you, and will explain to them why I stopped supporting you. I will explain my reasons, and ask my friends and family to do the same.
What has caused me to take this stance? The fact that you are in support of a ban on electronic cigarettes. I have smoked cigarettes for 30 years, and despite all of the products and therapies that I have tried,I quit smoking the day the I purchased my electronic cigarette in January 2009. Since then I have been able to breath easier, my smokers cough went away, and most importantly, I have no desire to go back to smoking tobacco. Also, there is no second hand smoke involved. This has never happened to me and I believe that this product has saved my life. I have had no side effects from this device and just had routine bloodwork and a checkup by my doctor, and all is fine.
In addition, I purchased a spare kit so that I could loan it out to my friends that smoke. So far, 3 out of 3 have quit cigarettes completely. I will continue to lend it out as long as it remains legal to do so.

Please reconsider your decision until further information can be obtained. I,for one, would volunteer for any study, and there are many others that would also.By banning these, you will only be sending many people right back to smoking.

 

[KDMickey]

Mine:

To Whom It May Concern:

I am a little curious about the ACS' stance on "e-cigarettes?" (or, as I prefer, Personal Vaporizers). I understand that the product has not been proven to be 100% safe, but I think it is safe to say that Personal Vaporizers are significantly less harmful than tobacco cigarettes. I know that the best option for current smokers is to quit or use some of the proven NRT products, but I feel that the medical community often fails to appreciate the psychological drives that fuel cigarette addiction. The Personal Vaporizer is the only product that I am aware of that actually provides an experience which can satiate the desire for a cigarette. I understand the nicotine shows some adverse effects on the cardiovascular system; however, when weighed against the dangers of smoking, is not the nicotine in a propylene glycol formula much more benign? Additionally, propylene glycol does not appear to have any adverse effects in a second-hand form. Smokers can look forward to NOT smelling like smoke, having cars that don't smell like smoke, having hands and clothes with which they cuddle their infants smell like smoke...
Please take the time to explain your position more fully to the American public. We who depend on the Personal Vaporizer to live a healthier lifestyle deserve a better explanation of why the ACS has defamed our product.

Regards,
-Kyle Mickey

I am going to put a mention about contacting the ACS in the "FDA Action" thread.

Thank you so much, Duckies.

 

[jerimiah797]

I emailed the ACS yesterday, and actually received an email reply from them. Here's what it said:

Dear Jerimiah,

Congratulations on quitting regular cigarettes. Please be assured your feedback has been forwarded to the appropriate staff person for consideration.

According to Society information, the e-cigarette has no published clinical trials that suggest it might work as a way to help smokers quit. No clinical trials have been submitted to the FDA. As of early 2009, the FDA has not ruled as to whether e-cigarettes are medical devices but it is investigating. There may also be questions about how safe it is to inhale some of the flavorings and other substances in the nicotine mists into the lungs. Even substances that are safe to eat can harm delicate tissues inside the lungs.

Like other forms of nicotine, the e-cigarettes and nicotine cartridges can be toxic to children or pets. They can also pose a choking hazard.

Again, we appreciate your feedback. If you have further tobacco-related inquiries, please contact the Society's Quitline Program at 1-800-QUIT-NOW (1-800-784-8669). Specialists with this program are able to provide a wealth of information related to tobacco issues and concerns, including information related to smoking cessation, effects of smoking, tobacco-related events and advocacy, and other concerns.

Thank you for contacting your American Cancer Society.

 

[Duckies]

Their response to me:

Dear XXXXXXXX,

Congratulations on your success in quitting smoking. We appreciate your comments regarding the e-cigarette and how it helped you. Please note that we have forwarded your message to the appropriate department for consideration. To review our information about this topic, please click on the following link:

ACS :: Guide to Quitting Smoking

In addition, we are sorry to hear that you will not be participating in this year's Relay For Life. Please know that we appreciate your past support of this event.

Thank you for contacting your American Cancer Society.
Joel
Online Cancer Information Specialist

They just don't *get* it.

No matter. My Doctor is thrilled with this program and his opinion means more to me than the ACS.

 

[TropicalBob]

According to Society information, the e-cigarette has no published clinical trials that suggest it might work as a way to help smokers quit. No clinical trials have been submitted to the FDA. As of early 2009, the FDA has not ruled as to whether e-cigarettes are medical devices but it is investigating. There may also be questions about how safe it is to inhale some of the flavorings and other substances in the nicotine mists into the lungs. Even substances that are safe to eat can harm delicate tissues inside the lungs.

Like other forms of nicotine, the e-cigarettes and nicotine cartridges can be toxic to children or pets. They can also pose a choking hazard.

No question Jeremiah got a better brush-off, Duckies.

We cannot deny their assessment in the quoted paragraphs either. Every one of those points has been brought up and discussed on this forum in the past year. Every one. And there are answers to those problems, also given on the forum. Have manufacturers changed their ways? Most haven't. It's business as usual.

 

[dc2k08]

There may also be questions about how safe it is to inhale some of the flavorings and other substances in the nicotine mists into the lungs. Even substances that are safe to eat can harm delicate tissues inside the lungs.

The FDA has been aware for a long time now that inhaling diacetyl, a synthetic butter flavoring common in microwave popcorn causes severe lung disease. They have been petitioned again and again to ban its use. Ronald Kuiper died 2 weeks ago, just one day before a jury decided that a maker of the chemical butter flavoring owed him $7.5 million for the destruction of his lungs. What has the FDA decided is the best course of action for this deadly flavoring? - to do nothing at all.

 

[yvilla]

Jerimiah, why not write them back, and make the point that even if everything they said to you is 100% accurate, it still doesn't justify banning e-cigarettes, not if harm reduction principles are applied, and not if the lives of people who would otherwise still be smoking cigarettes are of concern to them.

 

[Chevron07]

So does the American Cancer Society support the ban of all products that pose a choking hazard? That was very much a blow off..."Glad to hear you quit smoking, now go back to Camels and take a Chantix. It's better for you than inhaling flavoring."

 

[Oldnamenomore]

I suggest contacting you local media, include the fact that you helped raised 100k a year for ACS. If you get local it could go national.

 

[Closet Toker]

Is there any doubt that the ACS doesn't make big money fighting the evils of tobacco smoking?

Why would they allow a safer alternative to smoking?

They will continue on the band wagon along with Big Pharma, Big Tobacco, and Big Government.

They will not bite the hand that feeds them!

They all battle to keep the continuous cycle going.... they have to... it's their "bread and butter".

 

[chuckie]

I appreciate your effort, and totally agree with you. The thing most people don't understand are the economics of cancer and the cancer society,can you imagine the losses in money and jobs that would occur if the cancer soc. actually cured cancer. Doctors,hospitals,lawyers and pharma. companies would be hurt so badly it would bring total mayhem to an already sick world economy.
On top of all that, a totally worthless and ineffectual org(cancer society)would soon become just a bad dream. Remember,since their inception,the incidences of cancer have increased dramatically, (after all these years and billions of dollars in donations you'd have to say they're doing a hell of a job)

So I for one would like to commend you on giving up your volunteer status and making at least a small dent in all those billions of dollars they've wasted as for any replies you get from them if they seem unhappy its just proof you've done the right thing, after all who would want to be congratulated by a group of utter failures. By the way give me a hundred billion dollars and forty years and ill come up wit the longest lasting atomized you've ever seen

Good Luck
Chuck

 

[Steph2323]

Their response to me:
They just don't *get* it.

No matter. My Doctor is thrilled with this program and his opinion means more to me than the ACS.

You are right. They don't get it. I didn't get a response yet,but it doesn't really matter.
Stephanie

 

[TropicalBob]

Actually, the more detailed reply shows that they DO "get" it. That was a reasoned and accurate, legitimate concern. They would argue they WE don't "get" it. So what we have here is a failure to communicate!

We need to continue to express the positives we've discovered. Keep articulate, reasonable opposition flowing to them. Keep it on the level of their expressed concerns. No fire-breathing, poorly worded rants. And understand that we are pushing for an unknown with assumed benefits. They are saying what skeptics always say, "prove it."

Somewhere a compromise might be struck. Let's hope that compromise is adoption of the harm reduction philosophy. Without it, all smokefree alternatives could end up banned. And then what's left?

 

[Duckies]

What I meant is that they don't get harm reduction.

 

[TropicalBob]

And of that you are correct!