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STEPS: Substance Use Trial of E-cigarettes or Pharmacotherapy for Smoking

Medical University of South Carolina · with National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) · NCT06922617

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Opens the official ClinicalTrials.gov record, with the study team’s contacts. Bored Studies doesn’t enroll anyone.

Key facts

Compensation
Not posted. Ask the study team before screening.
Who can join
Ages 21+ · All sexes
Healthy volunteers
Accepted
Study type
Interventional · Not applicable
Target enrollment
240
US sites recruiting
4
Study start
October 17, 2025
Record last updated
October 22, 2026

Status re-checked against ClinicalTrials.gov within the last 12 hours.

What the study is about

The purpose of this study is to investigate whether non-cigarette tobacco products, namely e-cigarettes (nicotine vapes), can help people who smoke and are in treatment for substance use disorder quit smoking by switching completely to e-cigarettes as compared to FDA-approved medications, namely nicotine replacement therapy in the form of patches and lozenges. Participation will last 6 months and includes 14 weekly study visits and 2 follow-up study visits (in-person, but virtual study visits are possible). Participants will also complete a short daily diary on their phones each day for the first twelve weeks. To qualify, participants (ages 21+) must be enrolled in an outpatient substance use disorder (SUD) treatment program. The study is being done in four regions across South Carolina: Charleston, Pickens/Easley, Conway, and Greenville.

Being studied: Switching to E-Cigarette; Quitting using Medication; Counseling

Conditions: Tobacco Use; Substance Use Disorders

Eligibility criteria

Copied from the official record. The study team makes the final decision at screening.

Show full criteria

Inclusion Criteria

  • 21+ years of age,
  • smoke at least 5 cigarettes per day daily or near daily for the past 6 months,
  • be enrolled in outpatient SUD treatment and have an SUD diagnosis (past or current),
  • must submit a breath CO sample of ≥ 7 parts per million at screening and a positive instant-read urinary cotinine test,
  • have had at least one failed smoking quit attempt in their lifetime,
  • have interest in reducing smoking, quitting smoking, or switching to a less harmful product, and
  • if female, agrees to use a form of birth control during the study.

Exclusion criteria

  • any significant or unstable medical or psychiatric concern that would affect safety,
  • current use of smoking cessation pharmacotherapy for the purposes of quitting smoking,
  • pregnant, breastfeeding, or trying to become pregnant,
  • contraindicated for NRT, and
  • currently using an ENDS on 20+ days out of the past 30.

Recruiting US locations

  • MUSC Charleston

    Charleston, SC 29425

    Site contact: Ela Williams · 843-876-2090 · williela@musc.edu

  • Shoreline Behavioral Health Services

    Conway, SC 29526

    Site contact: April Lehman · 843-698-2767 · alehman@shorelinebhs.org

  • Phoenix Center

    Greenville, SC 29607

    Site contact: Daniel Moss · 864-898-2992 · mossd@musc.edu

  • Behavioral Health Services of Pickens County

    Pickens, SC 29671

    Site contact: Elizabeth Chapman, LPC · 864-898-2992 · chapmanb@musc.edu

Study contacts (from the official record)

  • Ela Williams · (843) 876-2090 · williela@musc.edu
All smoking & vaping studies in South Carolina →
STEPS: Substance Use Trial of E-cigarettes or Pharmacotherapy for… (NCT06922617) | Bored Studies