TFN E-News Update / December 2025

This Open Access Lung Cancer Navigation and Care is the first site-specific, comprehensive clinical guide designed specifically for Lung Cancer Navigators and Allied Health Professionals. This essential resource delivers end-to-end foundational knowledge, clinical guidelines, best practices, and critical tools to elevate the standard of care and promote fair health outcomes for individuals at risk for or living with lung cancer.

With lung cancer remaining the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the U.S. and globally, this guide addresses the urgent need for timely, evidence-based, and person-centered care. Each chapter is authored by multidisciplinary experts and seasoned navigators, offering in-depth content paired with real-world vignettes that illustrate practical application in patient navigation. Key takeaways, curated readings, and actionable resources conclude every chapter, making this a hands-on companion for clinical and community-based professionals alike.

On December 3, 2025, the CDC Foundation released Issue 2 of the TEEN+ Data Snapshot. The Snapshot highlights nationally representative findings from a survey of youth and young adults (13-27 years of age), fielded February-June 2025, related to use of “smart” vapes–e-cigarettes with digital displays, built-in games, Bluetooth connectivity, and other tech features.

Key findings include:

Among youth and young adults who use “smart” vapes, the two most commonly reported brands with “smart” features were Geek Bar and Raz.

More than one-third (37.3%) of youth and young adults who vape reported using a “smart” vape in the past 30 days, including 42.9% of youth ages 13–17 and 36.3% of young adults ages 18–27.

Youth and young adults reported a range of “smart” features, with indicators for device settings being the most common (69.7% of youth and 68.8% of young adults). About one in four (26.4%) youth and one in eight (13.5%) young adults said the “smart” vapes they used included games.

A new JAMA Viewpoint article by investigators of California’s Collaborative Consortium on Thirdhand Smoke highlights the significance and implications of California Assembly Bill 455 (AB 455), the world’s first law requiring the disclosure of thirdhand smoke contamination in residential real estate transactions. Signed into law on October 3, 2025, AB 455 establishes a new legal framework recognizing thirdhand smoke as an environmental hazard comparable to asbestos, radon, or lead paint.

Thirdhand smoke refers to the toxic residues left behind when tobacco smoke or vaping aerosols settle on surfaces, dust, and building materials. These pollutants–many classified under California’s Proposition 65 as carcinogens or reproductive toxins–can persist for years and pose particular risks to children, the elderly, and immunocompromised individuals.

Sales restrictions on all flavored tobacco products, including all types of menthol products, are gaining momentum at the local and state level. As of September 30, 2025, 422 jurisdictions and three Native American tribes have placed some type of restriction on the sale of flavored tobacco products, and of those, 162 have fully comprehensive policies that prohibit sales of all types of flavors across all products, including menthol/mint/wintergreen flavors that are sometimes exempted from flavor policies, at all retailers.

Applications are now open for the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids’ 2026 Youth Advocates of the Year Awards! The scholarship application deadline is January 16, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. PST. This year’s awards ceremony will take place on May 7, 2026, at the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C .

Awards featured: 

• (1) Barrie Fiske National Youth Advocate of the Year ($10,000 scholarship)
• (1) Group Youth Advocates of the Year ($2,500 grant) 

Previous recipients have demonstrated extraordinary passion and creativity in advocating for effective tobacco prevention policies. From rallying peers to testifying before local government and state legislatures, they have been on the front lines calling for change in their communities. Share this opportunity with young leaders you know!

• FDA issued a Federal Register notice announcing a virtual Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee meeting on Jan. 22, 2026, to discuss the modified risk tobacco product applications from Swedish Match USA, Inc. for several ZYN nicotine pouch products, each available in two strengths (three milligrams and six milligrams).
• FDA launched web versions of four forms in CTP Portal Next Generation for applicants submitting and amending premarket tobacco product applications and Substantial Equivalence Reports. 

Tobacco Free Nebraska has updated the Smokeless Tobacco Brochure, which was previously based on an older version, to encompass all types of smokeless tobacco. This brochure provides resources and steps to help those trying to quit smokeless tobacco products, including chew and nicotine pouches.

Download this resource for FREE here, and check out Tobacco Free Nebraska’s other cessation resources at the Nebraska Tobacco Quitline Order Form.

Marie lives in New York and started smoking in high school with her friends. They would congregate regularly to smoke the cigarettes they took from family members. Marie smoked for 40 years, although she tried several times to stop. She would quit smoking for up to 9 months at a time, but something—an issue at work or a problem with the kids—would inevitably trigger a relapse.

In 1993, in her early 40s, Marie was diagnosed with Buerger’s disease, a disorder linked to tobacco use that causes blood vessels in the hands and feet to become blocked and can result in infection or gangrene. Over time, parts of Marie’s body, such as her feet, fingertips, and lower legs, required amputation. Marie has been tobacco-free since 2006.