Hews
News
The World Health Organization is trying to keep tobacco-related deaths in developing countries from reaching the high levels found in the United States and United Kingdom. "The tobacco epidemic developed in the United States and United Kingdom before we knew [tobacco] was bad," said Claire Chollat-Traquet, Ph.D., of WHO'S Tobacco or Health Program. For the developing countries, where the rate of tobacco use remains low, there is still time to avoid this epidemic, she said. WHO will have to move fast to overcome the influence of the tobacco industry. For example, in Africa, where tobacco use is low but rising rapidly, radio and television networks and newspapers are welcoming the financial support offered by the tobacco industry. Cigarette consumption in Africa went up 42% between 1970 and 1985, compared to a fall of 25% in the United Kingdom.
Threatens To Undo "While the world is acquiring the technology to break the vicious circle of poverty and disease, it is ironic to realize that increased tobacco consumption threatens to undo much of the progress made in health," Chollat-Traquet wrote in a recent article. One-third of all the cigarettes smoked in the world are smoked in China. That country's consumption has tripled in the last 10 years. About 60 to 70% of Chinese men smoke.
Vol. 84, No. 22, November 18, 1992
"Worldwide, there are at least 3 million people dying of tobacco-related disease this year," said the program's Alan D. Lopez, Ph.D. "This will reach 10 million per year in the next 2 to 3 decades." And 70% of these deaths will occur in developing countries. Of tobacco-related disease, lung cancer constitutes 25%, vascular disease is 35% to 40%, cancers of the mouth, esophagus, pharynx, and larynx are 3% to 5%, other cancers are another 5% to 10%, and chronic lung disease makes up most of the rest.
hi Eastern Europe, where tobacco use is already high, WHO is hoping to decrease the lag time between the beginning of the epidemic and information dissemination, to decrease consumption more quickly. Today, the probability of a 35-year-old man dying before age 70 in countries such as Hungary, Poland, the Czech and Slovak Republics, and the former Soviet Union is about 50%. About 40% of these deaths can be attributed to tobacco. Tobacco firms are moving in as strong supporters of Eastern commun-
StatBUe
Trends in Bladder Cancer Incidence and Mortality, 1973-1989 Bladder cancer incidence is rising while mortality Ls falling. Due to difficulties in classification, it is the only cancer for which in situ cases are included in incidence rates. Treatment improvements may be contributing to decreasing mortality, but another possibility Ls that there is a decreasing trend in invasive tumor incidence and an increasing trend in in situ tumor incidence.
Mortality
Incidence
I
Percent Change 23.4
• •
20 15.0
i
10
13.5
2.9
5 0 Men
White Black
Men
Women
Women
-157 -21.5 Citation: Cancer Statistics Review, 1973-1989
-19.9
-18.3
— By Benjamin F. Hankey, ScJ).
NEWS 1689
Downloaded from http://jnci.oxfordjournals.org/ at University of Glasgow on June 25, 2015
WHO Trying to Slow TobaccoRelated Deaths in Developing Countries
News News ities, building new factories and medical centers. In Asia, foreign cigarettes are gaining prominence through sponsorship of sports, arts, discotheques, and academic institutions. Tobacco advertising activities of the largest tobacco company are 50 times greater than the WHO's Tobacco or Health budget, according to ChollatTraquet.
NCI Still Has "Designs" on Food Chemical Research
EC expenditures to subsidize tobacco jumped fivefold between 1979 and 1990. In 1991, about $1.5 billion (1.2 billion ECU) were spent on subsidies. According to WHO, tobacco is the most heavily subsidized commodity of the EC's Common Agricultural Policy. Some countries have taken stringent actions with success. For example, Singapore was the first Asian country to implement public education and pass strong legislation against tobacco use. Fines for disobeying laws are strictly enforced. There is even a billboard that tallies off the smoking-related deaths each day. Singapore's smoking rates are down
Dr. CUirc ChoUat-Traquct
1690
Dr. Alan D. Lope/
from 50% to under 15% among men, according to Lopez.
Unique Resource Because WHO cannot dictate to a member state, it is limited to providing technical advice to countries trying to combat tobacco use. The Tobacco or Health program has developed a standard data center and is attempting to quantify the problem around the world. "We're in a unique position to produce the most reliable data," Lopez explained. WHO has "good" data from 50 countries and less complete data from 150 others, which "need work," he added. The program also sponsors World No-Tobacco Day, produces books on special subjects such as women and tobacco, and publishes a newsletter, "Tobacco Alert," providing legislative updates, epidemiologic information, and practical examples of tobacco control activities and news from worldwide conferences. — Cori Vanchieri
Downloaded from http://jnci.oxfordjournals.org/ at University of Glasgow on June 25, 2015
Heavy Subsidies
After a funding hiatus that pushed some investigators to greener pastures, the National Cancer Institute's "designer food program" took on a new intervention study this fall and anticipates a second contract round early next year. 'The program is moving forward," said Carolyn Clifford, M.D., chief of the diet and cancer branch and current program head. But, she quickly added, " 'designer food program' is a misnomer. NCI does not 'design' foods — that's simply a catchy phrase." Rather, the program aims to identify, quantify, and evaluate the nonnutrient substances in fruits, grains, and vegetables that may underlie their anti-carcinogenic potential. The technology to "design" foods already exists; it is the science behind it that is lagging and that the NCI program is meant to supply, Clifford said. The term "designer food" was coined by the program's original head, toxicologist Herbert Pierson, Ph.D., who shifted his base of operations to the private sector late last year, a few months after federal funding for the 5-year, $20.5 million project hesitated at about the 1-year mark.
Ongoing Program Clifford acknowledges no disruption in the program's flow, only a necessary interval to analyze initial results before proceeding. Some of the investigators took extra time to complete their tasks, delaying anaylsis of the initial studies. Results from the first batch of about two dozen studies are currently under review and will form the basis for new Requests for Proposals, according to ClifJournal of the National Cancer Institute
News
The World Health Organization is trying to keep tobacco-related deaths in developing countries from reaching the high levels found in the United States and United Kingdom. "The tobacco epidemic developed in the United States and United Kingdom before we knew [tobacco] was bad," said Claire Chollat-Traquet, Ph.D., of WHO'S Tobacco or Health Program. For the developing countries, where the rate of tobacco use remains low, there is still time to avoid this epidemic, she said. WHO will have to move fast to overcome the influence of the tobacco industry. For example, in Africa, where tobacco use is low but rising rapidly, radio and television networks and newspapers are welcoming the financial support offered by the tobacco industry. Cigarette consumption in Africa went up 42% between 1970 and 1985, compared to a fall of 25% in the United Kingdom.
Threatens To Undo "While the world is acquiring the technology to break the vicious circle of poverty and disease, it is ironic to realize that increased tobacco consumption threatens to undo much of the progress made in health," Chollat-Traquet wrote in a recent article. One-third of all the cigarettes smoked in the world are smoked in China. That country's consumption has tripled in the last 10 years. About 60 to 70% of Chinese men smoke.
Vol. 84, No. 22, November 18, 1992
"Worldwide, there are at least 3 million people dying of tobacco-related disease this year," said the program's Alan D. Lopez, Ph.D. "This will reach 10 million per year in the next 2 to 3 decades." And 70% of these deaths will occur in developing countries. Of tobacco-related disease, lung cancer constitutes 25%, vascular disease is 35% to 40%, cancers of the mouth, esophagus, pharynx, and larynx are 3% to 5%, other cancers are another 5% to 10%, and chronic lung disease makes up most of the rest.
hi Eastern Europe, where tobacco use is already high, WHO is hoping to decrease the lag time between the beginning of the epidemic and information dissemination, to decrease consumption more quickly. Today, the probability of a 35-year-old man dying before age 70 in countries such as Hungary, Poland, the Czech and Slovak Republics, and the former Soviet Union is about 50%. About 40% of these deaths can be attributed to tobacco. Tobacco firms are moving in as strong supporters of Eastern commun-
StatBUe
Trends in Bladder Cancer Incidence and Mortality, 1973-1989 Bladder cancer incidence is rising while mortality Ls falling. Due to difficulties in classification, it is the only cancer for which in situ cases are included in incidence rates. Treatment improvements may be contributing to decreasing mortality, but another possibility Ls that there is a decreasing trend in invasive tumor incidence and an increasing trend in in situ tumor incidence.
Mortality
Incidence
I
Percent Change 23.4
• •
20 15.0
i
10
13.5
2.9
5 0 Men
White Black
Men
Women
Women
-157 -21.5 Citation: Cancer Statistics Review, 1973-1989
-19.9
-18.3
— By Benjamin F. Hankey, ScJ).
NEWS 1689
Downloaded from http://jnci.oxfordjournals.org/ at University of Glasgow on June 25, 2015
WHO Trying to Slow TobaccoRelated Deaths in Developing Countries
News News ities, building new factories and medical centers. In Asia, foreign cigarettes are gaining prominence through sponsorship of sports, arts, discotheques, and academic institutions. Tobacco advertising activities of the largest tobacco company are 50 times greater than the WHO's Tobacco or Health budget, according to ChollatTraquet.
NCI Still Has "Designs" on Food Chemical Research
EC expenditures to subsidize tobacco jumped fivefold between 1979 and 1990. In 1991, about $1.5 billion (1.2 billion ECU) were spent on subsidies. According to WHO, tobacco is the most heavily subsidized commodity of the EC's Common Agricultural Policy. Some countries have taken stringent actions with success. For example, Singapore was the first Asian country to implement public education and pass strong legislation against tobacco use. Fines for disobeying laws are strictly enforced. There is even a billboard that tallies off the smoking-related deaths each day. Singapore's smoking rates are down
Dr. CUirc ChoUat-Traquct
1690
Dr. Alan D. Lope/
from 50% to under 15% among men, according to Lopez.
Unique Resource Because WHO cannot dictate to a member state, it is limited to providing technical advice to countries trying to combat tobacco use. The Tobacco or Health program has developed a standard data center and is attempting to quantify the problem around the world. "We're in a unique position to produce the most reliable data," Lopez explained. WHO has "good" data from 50 countries and less complete data from 150 others, which "need work," he added. The program also sponsors World No-Tobacco Day, produces books on special subjects such as women and tobacco, and publishes a newsletter, "Tobacco Alert," providing legislative updates, epidemiologic information, and practical examples of tobacco control activities and news from worldwide conferences. — Cori Vanchieri
Downloaded from http://jnci.oxfordjournals.org/ at University of Glasgow on June 25, 2015
Heavy Subsidies
After a funding hiatus that pushed some investigators to greener pastures, the National Cancer Institute's "designer food program" took on a new intervention study this fall and anticipates a second contract round early next year. 'The program is moving forward," said Carolyn Clifford, M.D., chief of the diet and cancer branch and current program head. But, she quickly added, " 'designer food program' is a misnomer. NCI does not 'design' foods — that's simply a catchy phrase." Rather, the program aims to identify, quantify, and evaluate the nonnutrient substances in fruits, grains, and vegetables that may underlie their anti-carcinogenic potential. The technology to "design" foods already exists; it is the science behind it that is lagging and that the NCI program is meant to supply, Clifford said. The term "designer food" was coined by the program's original head, toxicologist Herbert Pierson, Ph.D., who shifted his base of operations to the private sector late last year, a few months after federal funding for the 5-year, $20.5 million project hesitated at about the 1-year mark.
Ongoing Program Clifford acknowledges no disruption in the program's flow, only a necessary interval to analyze initial results before proceeding. Some of the investigators took extra time to complete their tasks, delaying anaylsis of the initial studies. Results from the first batch of about two dozen studies are currently under review and will form the basis for new Requests for Proposals, according to ClifJournal of the National Cancer Institute
