EnglishNicotine dispenser II – The aerosol
The tobacco giant's device, invented years ago in secret, could be a boon for addicted smokers.
The tobacco giant's device, called "Aria", was invented years ago in secret
Cigarette maker Philip Morris has developed an inhaler that could deliver a nicotine mist deep into the lungs, giving smokers a satisfying dose of the addictive drug without the carcinogens, gases and toxic metals that make tobacco smoke so dangerous. But the project appears to have stalled.
Cloaked in secrecy, the device was invented nearly a dozen years ago at a time the tobacco industry was vigorously denying that nicotine was addictive, internal company documents show.
It was part of an effort by the top cigarette maker to explore the possibility of offering a "clean" form of nicotine to those who can't or won't quit.
"The cigarette manufacturers don't want to kill their customers," said Kenneth Warner, dean of the University of Michigan School of Public Health.
"That's simply an unfortunate side effect of use of the product."
"If they can come up with a substitute that would capture the same-size market, they'd love it," Warner said. It would "save them a lot of legal fees" and "they'd feel more virtuous."
Nicotine is a mild stimulant that helps some people to focus and relax when under stress. Although a crucial part of a deadly product, nicotine by itself is not very bad for most people, experts say.
It does increase the heart rate and could harm people with an existing cardiac condition. For others, however, the effect is similar to mild exercise, said Dr. Neal Benowitz, a nicotine expert and professor of medicine, psychiatry and biopharmaceutical sciences at UC San Francisco.
As Michael Szymanczyk, the Philip Morris's chief executive, told a group of financial analysts in 2002, "Our scientists are working with a single-minded focus on finding ways to reduce a smoker's exposure to potentially harmful constituents in tobacco smoke."
Philip Morris has kept the project under wraps so far while it explores how best to commercialize the technology.
But William A. Farone, former director of applied research at Philip Morris, said the company had a long history of exploring promising developments such as the nicotine inhaler then getting cold feet. "They always worried in the ultimate about losing the damn gold mine they have," said Farone, who was fired in 1984 for what the company said was insubordination.
Now, Chrysalis Technologies Inc., a tiny Philip Morris subsidiary, is trying to sell the inhaler as an alternative to injections for a variety of medications, including pain remedies and treatments for emphysema, a disease caused by smoking.
Last January, for example, Chrysalis touted the hand-held device, called Aria, at a drug-delivery conference in San Diego. Brooks Adams, director of business development for Chrysalis, described it as a "compact, easy-to-use portable inhaler" with "high lung-dosing potential," according to a copy of his presentation.
But the American Thoracic Society has already blocked one effort by Philip Morris to promote the device at a medical conference. Several important medical journals, including Thoracic Society publications, refuse to publish any medical research funded by the tobacco industry.
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