James O. Prochaska, PhD

The article, Promoting Smoking Cessation Among Cancer Patients, is an excellent complement to the clinical practice guideline on smoking cessation recently published by the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research (AHCPR).[1] The guideline presented considerable detail for clinicians on how to help smokers who are prepared to quit. For the approximately 80% of smokers who are not prepared, the guideline included only a few paragraphs. The approach of Prokhorov, Hudman, and Gritz, seasoned clinicians and scientists, can help clinicians become much more confident when counseling all smokers, including those in the precontemplation and contemplation stages.