Social Media Support Groups for Adolescent Vaping Cessation

NCT07540780 | Recruiting

• 2 other identifiers: 20204627R01CA292971
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 60
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

The purpose of this study is to pilot test feasibility and acceptability of the Quit the Hit Toolkit, a social media-based nicotine vaping cessation program for adolescents and young adults, adapted for use in community settings.

Conditions

Vaping; Vaping Cessation; Nicotine Dependence

Keywords

single arm; pilot; intervention; vaping; adolescent; young adult

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Number of coaches who complete training and coach a vaping cessation group for 5 weeks

  Participants will be trained to serve as group coaches, implementing the intervention ("Quit the Hit Toolkit") to help teens and young adults stop vaping. Coaches will complete training and each will recruit approximately 10 participants for a vaping cessation group for 5 weeks. Investigators will track the number of coaches who successfully complete both training, recruit participants, and coach the groups for 5 weeks.

  5 weeks

Secondary Outcomes (3)

• Number of participants recruited and enrolled in the pilot study

  From time that coaches complete training to pilot group kickoff not greater than 4 weeks

• Number of participants who complete vaping cessation group over 5 weeks

  From start of cessation groups to end of the intervention over 5 weeks.

• Acceptability of training protocol and intervention procedures to coaches and participants measured by qualitative interviews

  Following the end of pilot groups over about 2 weeks

Study Arms (1)

Vaping Intervention

EXPERIMENTAL

Individuals will receive training on how to implement the vaping intervention (Quit the Hit Toolkit) in their own community settings. These individuals will serve as coaches and will recruit and facilitate vaping support groups on Instagram, where group participants will receive up to 3 Instagram posts per day for 30 days. Group coaches will work with a Cessation Counselor, Principal Investigator, Co-Investigators and a Pediatrician on demand if additional expertise or clinical advice is needed. Group participants will be educated about signs of nicotine dependence and if they express interest in pharmacotherapy will be encouraged to access this through their personal healthcare providers. The Instagram groups will provide educational and social support, troubleshooting and advice about nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) or other forms of treatment. Groups will also include trained peer mentors to provide additional support.

Behavioral: Social Media Intervention

Interventions

Social Media Intervention BEHAVIORAL

Social media based intervention using Instagram with up to 3 posts per day for 30 days

Vaping Intervention

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 13 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Child (0-17), Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• English literacy
• Age between 13-21 years (group participants) or 18+ (coaches, peer mentors)
• Indicate they use social media "most" (\>= 4) days per week (group participants)
• Have vaped at least once per week in the past 30 days (90 percent of participants) (group participants)
• Access to a computer or mobile phone with photo capability to verify abstinence from vaping (group participants)
• Indicate they are considering quitting or are interested in quitting with the next 6 months or within the next 30 days (group participants)
• Currently reside in California, Minnesota, Oklahoma, or South Carolina

You may not qualify if:

• No English literacy
• Age under 13 or over 21 (group participants) or under 18 (coaches, peer mentors)
• Insufficient social media use (3 or fewer days per week) (group participants)
• Have not vaped at least once per week in past 30 days (group participants)
• No access to computer or mobile phone with photo capability to verify abstinence from vaping (group participants)
• Not considering or interested in quitting vaping in the next 30 days or 6 months (group participants)
• Not a resident of California, Minnesota, Oklahoma, or South Carolina

Sponsors & Collaborators

• University of California, San Francisco: lead
• Rescue Agency: collaborator
• HopeLab Foundation: collaborator
• National Cancer Institute (NCI): collaborator

Study Sites (1)

University of California, San Francisco

San Francisco, California, 94143, United States

RECRUITING

Related Publications (2)

• Lyu JC, Olson SS, Ramo DE, Ling PM. Delivering vaping cessation interventions to adolescents and young adults on Instagram: protocol for a randomized controlled trial. BMC Public Health. 2022 Dec 10;22(1):2311. doi: 10.1186/s12889-022-14606-7.

  PMID: 36496358 BACKGROUND

• Ling PM, JoanneLyu C, Lisha NE, NhungNguyen, ValerieGribben, DanielleRamo. Social media support groups for youth nicotine vaping cessation: a randomized clinical trial. Am J Prev Med. 2026 Feb 20:108314. doi: 10.1016/j.amepre.2026.108314. Online ahead of print.

  PMID: 41724253 BACKGROUND

Related Links

• This is the pilot study website

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Vaping; Tobacco Use Disorder

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Smoking; Behavior; Substance-Related Disorders; Chemically-Induced Disorders; Mental Disorders

Study Officials

• Pamela M Ling, MD, MPH

  University of California, San Francisco

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Central Study Contacts

Sarah Rosen, BA

CONTACT

415-502-0758; quitthehit@ucsf.edu

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: NA
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: TREATMENT
• Intervention Model: SINGLE GROUP
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Professor of Medicine

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: April 14, 2026
• First Posted: April 20, 2026
• Study Start: April 15, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): July 31, 2026
• Study Completion (Estimated): August 1, 2026
• Last Updated: April 23, 2026

Record last verified: 2026-04

Locations

US (1)