Avatar-led app using ACT to help young adults quit vaping
Official title: ACT on Vaping: Digital Therapeutic for Young Adult Vaping Cessation
Funded at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center · NIH-11247482 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project offers an avatar-led smartphone program based on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy to help young adults stop using e-cigarettes.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Seattle, United States) |
| Project start | September 15, 2022 |
| Project end | November 30, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $812,783 |
| NIH project number | 5UH3DA057032-04 |
| Project ID | NIH-11247482 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Young adults who currently use e-cigarettes and have a smartphone, including those at any stage of readiness to quit, are the intended participants.
✕Less likely to help
People who do not vape, who lack smartphone access, or who need immediate in-person medical treatment for nicotine dependence are unlikely to benefit from this app-based intervention.
What this research studies
You would use an avatar-led app that teaches Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) skills tailored for young adult vapers. The team will finish building the app, submit it for an FDA Q-review, and run a small randomized pilot comparing the app to brief advice and education. About 60 participants will be enrolled in the pilot with outcomes including self-report and biochemically confirmed abstinence. The goal is to check whether people like the app and show early signs of quitting before moving to a larger trial.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could give young adults an accessible digital tool that increases quit attempts and supports lasting vaping cessation.
How similar studies have gone: Previous pilot work of a similar ACT-based digital approach reported high user satisfaction and promising rates of biochemically confirmed tobacco abstinence, though larger trials are limited.
Where this research is happening
-
Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center
Seattle, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Heffner, Jaimee — Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center
- Study coordinator: Heffner, Jaimee
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.