Footnotes

• Twitter @dannygiovenco

• Contributors JP conceived the article and lead the writing team. All authors reviewed the literature and contributed to drafts. JP is the guarantor of the article.

• Funding JP, DPG, MJL and OG were supported by in part by NCI and FDA Center for Tobacco Products (CTP) under U54CA229973. DPG was supported by a grant from the Office of The Director at the National Institutes of Health (DP5OD023064). MM’s effort is supported by NIDA and FDA Center for Tobacco Products (CTP) (R01DA049814). OG was also supported in part by the Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey under P30CA07270-5931. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the views of the NIH or FDA.

• Competing interests JP is a paid expert witness for the Plaintiffs in a Multi-District Litigation invoking American Spirit Cigarettes. MM is also a paid expert witness in litigation sponsored by the Public Health Advocacy Institute against RJ Reynolds. This arrangement has been reviewed and approved by the University of Nevada, Reno and Johns Hopkins University in accordance with their conflict of interest policies.

• Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.