Cancer is becoming an increasingly important health problem in the low-and middle-income countries in the Asia Pacific region, as well as in high-income countries because of ageing populations and changes in lifestyle associated with economic development and epidemiologic transition. This paper reviews the cancer burden and control in the Asia Pacific region (limited to East Asia, South Eastern Asia and Pacific Islands countries, territories and other areas), with relevant information primarily extracted from the GLOBOCAN 2008, Cancer Incidence in Five Continents series and WHO websites. Most low-and middle-income countries have a cancer control strategy and/or an action plan; however, coverage of cancer registration is still very low and does not meet the international standard in terms of quality. Therefore, only limited data were available for the recent global estimation of cancer burden. Large variations, in both cancer incidence and mortality, were observed in the populations in the different sub-regions of Asia. The most common cancer in males is lung cancer in the Eastern and South Eastern sub-regions, while prostate cancer comes close to lung cancer in the Pacific Island countries. In females, breast cancer is the most common in all three regions. The predominance of lung, stomach, colorectal, prostate, breast and cervical cancers makes cancer control more amenable in the Asia Pacific region. Up-to-date statistics on cancer occurrence and outcome are essential for the planning and evaluation of cancer control programmes. Priority can be given to population-based cancer registration, risk reduction, especially tobacco control, and primary health care based enhancement of health care systems to diagnose and manage cancer specifically in low-and middle-income countries.

Children's exposure to unhealthy food marketing is recognised by leading international health organisations as a probable causal factor for obesity. Outdoor advertising near schools embeds commercial food messages into children's everyday lives and acts as a cue for food purchases. This project aimed to describe food advertising in the area around schools in two demographically and culturally disparate cities in the Asia Pacific Region. Data on outdoor food advertising were collected from the area within 500 m of 30 primary schools in each of two cities: Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia and Manila, The Philippines. For each food advertisement, information was collected on: distance from the school (within 250 or 500 m); size, setting, type and position of the advertisement; and the food/drink product type promoted (core/healthy, non-core/unhealthy and miscellaneous). Density of advertisements was calculated per 100 m 2 . The density of food advertising was twice as high in the area closest to schools compared to the area further from schools (.9 vs. .5 in Ulaanbaatar and 6.5 vs. 3.3 advertisements per 100 m 2 in Manila). Almost all food advertisements were for non-core/ unhealthy foods/drinks (92% in Ulaanbaatar and 85% in Manila), and soft drinks were most frequently promoted. Children in Ulaanbaatar and Manila are exposed to large numbers of advertisements for unhealthy foods/drinks on their way to and from school, and these are particularly clustered within the immediate vicinity of schools. Clear directions for policy development are outlined to reduce children's exposure to this marketing, including restricting the placement and content of outdoor advertising.

Strengthening cancer registration, tobacco control, and promotion of a healthy diet, as well as HBV and HPV vaccination, is the priority areas to reduce cancer burden. Health-system strengthening with a defined package of services at different levels, referral care, trained human resources, and appropriate technology is necessary to improve cancer management. Pain relief and palliative care are priorities as well. A well-planned national cancer control program with a strong component of surveillance and monitoring can help to reduce the cancer burden in LMICs and Pacific Island countries.