Nicotine makes new blood vessels grow

In findings that suggest a new theory on how smoking causes disease--and raise concerns about long-term use of nicotine replacement therapy--California scientists have discovered that nicotine can trigger the growth of new blood vessels. This process, called angiogenesis, has been implicated in the spread of cancer, the growth of angiomas of VHL, and the build-up of plaque in heart arteries.

In experiments with human cells and mice, researchers at Stanford University found that nicotine prompted new blood vessel formation--a process believed to help tumors and artery-clogging plaques thrive and grow. They report the findings in the July issue of the journal Nature Medicine.

'This is the first evidence that nicotine promotes angiogenesis, and more work is needed to understand how it is related to tobacco-related diseases,' lead researcher Dr. John P. Cooke said in an interview with Reuters Health. What it does suggest, he said, is that nicotine-replacement therapy should remain only a short-term therapy to get smokers off of cigarettes--and not a long-term fix for nicotine craving--since nicotine on its own may have health consequences. 'This shouldn't be taken to say that nicotine replacement therapy should be stopped,' Cooke stressed. 'But it should be used only in the short-term.'

Nature Medicine 2001;7:833-839,775-777.

As printed in the VHL Family Forum  9:3, September 2001.  For permission to reprint, please contact VHL Family Alliance, editor@vhl.org. Further information is available from the VHL Family Alliance, info@vhl.org.