The American Society of Clinical Oncology called for the steps as part of a wider crackdown on smoking-related diseases and deaths, which it billed as the world's number one public health threat.

In a keynote speech at the society's 39th annual meeting, ASCO president Paul Bunn criticised existing tobacco-control measures as fragmented and ineffective and said a more comprehensive approach was needed to combat what one expert called "an industry-made pandemic of preventable diseases."

"ASCO calls for an urgent and comprehensive review of the global tobacco issue -- on its many levels -- to achieve the total elimination of tobacco addiction and tobacco use," said Bunn. "Saving lives is our number one priority."

Cancer experts estimate that smoking-related illnesses were responsible for 100 million deaths in the last century, and will account for one billion in this century if the number of smokers continues to rise as projected.

The next 25 years will see "the largest industry-made pandemic of preventable diseases and early death in the recorded history of our world," said John Seffrin, chief executive officer of the American Cancer Society.