SMOKING GENES IDENTIFIED COMMON GENES AFFECT HOW MUCH YOU SMOKE, HOW HARD IT IS TO QUIT By Daniel J. DeNoon WebMD Health News Reviewed by Laura J. Martin, MD April 26, 2010 -- Common gene variants affect how much a person smokes, whether one becomes a smoker, how hard it is to quit, and risk of lung cancer from smoking, new studies find.

The studies, based on genetic information collected by an international consortium from more than 140,000 people of European descent, expand on a 2008 report linking a specific region of the genome to smoking behavior./.../