BACKGROUND We have established and/or upgraded cancer registries in four Pacific countries, a region where few cancer registries exist. We report age-standardised cancer incidence in Tonga (2000-2005), Fiji (2002-2005), Cook Islands (2000-2005) and Niue (2000-2005), and in Pacific people in New Zealand (2000-2005). METHODS In each country we identified incident cancer cases by reviewing hospi...

Pacific populations have long been observed to suffer a high burden of metabolic disease, including obesity, type 2 diabetes and gout. The 'Thrifty Genotype' hypothesis has frequently been used to explain this high prevalence of disease. Here, the 'Thrifty Genotype' hypothesis and the evolutionary background of Pacific populations are examined. We question its relevance not only in the Pacific ...

The World Health Organization (WHO) Western Pacific Region Gonococcal Antimicrobial Surveillance Programme is a multicentric long term programme for continuous surveillance of the antimicrobial susceptibility of Neisseria gonorrhoeae. In 1996 the programme examined the susceptibility of 8,421 isolates of gonococci to various antimicrobials in 17 focal points. A trend toward increased resistance...

BACKGROUND The Pacific region is an area unique in the world, composed of thousands of islands with differing climates and environments. The spreading and establishment of the mosquito Aedes aegypti in these islands might be linked to human migration. Ae. aegypti is the major vector of arboviruses (dengue, chikungunya and Zika viruses) in the region. The intense circulation of these viruses in ...

The Colombian Pacific region is second nationally in number of malaria cases reported. This zone presents great ecological heterogeneity and Anopheles species diversity. However, little is known about the current spatial and temporal distribution of vector species. This study, conducted in three ecologically different localities of the Pacific region, aimed to evaluate the composition and distr...

The Coral Triangle in the Indo-Pacific is a region renowned for exceptional marine biodiversity. The area could have acted as a 'centre of origin' where speciation has been prolific or a 'centre of survival' by providing refuge during major environmental shifts such as sea-level changes. The region could also have acted as a 'centre of accumulation' for species with origins outside of the Coral...

The World Health Organization (WHO) Western Pacific Region Gonococcal Antimicrobial Surveillance Programme is a multicentric long term programme for continuous surveillance of the antimicrobial susceptibility of Neisseria gonorrhoeae. In 1996 the programme examined the susceptibility of 8,421 isolates of gonococci to various antimicrobials in 17 focal points. A trend toward increased resistance...

This article summarises the work being undertaken by the World Health Organisation Pacific Islands Mental Health Network (PIMHnet) since its inception in 2006. The article also outlines the mental health issues that present particular challenges in the Pacific region, and the innovative approaches that have been taken to address those issues, with the goal of improving mental health throughout ...

Medical toxicology is somehow a neglected field of medicine. Support for this discipline is necessary as there are many competing interests within a nation's public health priorities (1). In the previous issue of the Asia Pacific Journal of Medical Toxicology, the essentials of the empowerment of medical toxicology in the Asia Pacific region have been discussed (2). Perhaps, there is now an urg...

The El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is known to have different modes of expression, characterized by different dynamics and spatial anomalies patterns: the Eastern Pacific (EP) and Central Pacific (CP) El Niño. The main region of influence of the former is located in the Eastern Pacific, while CP events have a stronger signature of ocean/climate anomalies in the Central West Pacific. This l...