Today is World No Tobacco Day
May 31, 2012
Tobacco remains the single most important preventable cause of chronic disease on a global scale. While in high-income countries the fight against tobacco is increasingly successful, the epidemic of use of smoking and smokeless products continues to progress in medium- and low-income countries: this is where the greatest share of tobacco-related disease and death is already occurring, and will keep increasing.
The International Prevention Research Institute (iPRI) has been a leader in the fight for a tobacco-free world. His senior faculty members Professors Boyle, Boffetta, Autier, La Vecchia have led major research efforts to identify and quantify the health effects of tobacco and the benefit of avoidance and cessation. Most recently, Dr. Boyle has acted as senior editor of the second edition of the book “Tobacco:Science, Policy and Public Health“, which summarizes the main scientific, medical, societal and political issues around tobacco and health. You can find more about publications from iPRI scientists at http://www.i-pri.org/science/books/.
The International Prevention Research Institute is actively involved in several major research efforts on tobacco and health, with emphasis on medium- and low-resource countries. Together with Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences Cancer Institute and Hospital, Yale University, and other prestigious institutions, iPRI is coordinating a large-scale prospective study North-Eastern China, to assess the long-term effects of tobacco smoking and other major cancer risk factors and to test the effectiveness of smoking control intervention. Similar projects are going on in Russia, Iran, and India in collaboration with a large number of national and international institutions. iPRI is a partner in a project which has been preliminary selected for by Fogarty International to develop and test smoking control interventions in Iran and Taiwan.
A world without tobacco is possible and within the reach of an ambitious and aggressive global prevention movement. IPRI is proud to contribute to this effort.
