Despite teens' perception of the drug, the 15th annual Partnership Attitude Tracking Study also shows that fewer teens are using ecstasy.

"Even though we have the good news that overall ecstasy use has leveled off after a big surge, we've still got 55 percent of teenagers, 13 million American teenagers, who say they see no great risk in trying it. And that's what we have to reverse," said Steve Pasierb, president and CEO of the Partnership for a Drug-Free America.

The study's findings were based on a survey of 7,084 teenagers ages 12 to 18. According to the survey, 77 percent of teens said there is a great risk in using ecstasy regularly. On the other hand, only 45 percent saw great risk in trying it once or twice.

"What the data shows is that prevention can work," Pasierb said, "that in the last year Americans paid a lot of attention to the ecstasy issue through news media, schools, advertising media, community groups, and you had a 71-percent surge in use between 1999 and 2001 stop dead in its tracks."

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