Those looking to quit smoking have another weapon in their arsenal to kick the habit. Chantix was approved by the FDA yesterday, but whether insurance companies will cover it remains a mystery. Chantix works by “selectively blocking the α₄β₂ nicotinic receptors” (PDF) in the brain.

Chantix joins another smoking-cessation drug that’s not very popular at all: Zyban. Zyban never really made it big because insurance companies refused to pay for it, and there was another drug on the market that had the same active ingredient — the perennially popular Wellbutrin.

For Pfizer’s sake, I hope they find a second clinical use for Chantix before someone else does, otherwise I suspect they will have wasted a boatload of money. Rarely are brand-name medications priced low enough to appeal to the masses who have to pay out-of-pocket.

On a completely unrelated note, I saw Thank You for Smoking yesterday and it was excellent.

[tags]Chantix, Pfizer, smoking cessation, Wellbutrin, Zyban[/tags]