When smokers on nicotine patch therapy lapse, they may have a better chance of avoiding a return to smoking if they stick with the patches instead of giving up their quit attempt, a new study concludes. Nicotine replacement therapy, via patches, gums, nasal sprays and inhalers, is one option for kicking the smoking habit. But whether people should immediately stop using those therapies if they fall off the wagon has been a foggy area.