A billion people will die of tobacco-related illnesses during this century if current trends continue, according to officials from the World Health Organization (WHO).

The Associated Press reported July 10 that the Cancer Atlas report said that tobacco causes about 1.4 million deaths worldwide each year, with lung cancer the most prevalent of the 10.9 million new cancer cases reported annually. "We know with cancer, if we take action now, we can save 2 million lives a year by 2020 and 6.5 million by 2040," said WHO health policy adviser Judith Mackay.

Researchers said there are 1.25 billion smokers in the world, a number expected to stay steady or even increase because of population growth.

The Cancer Atlas and companion Tobacco Atlas were published by the American Cancer Society with help from the WHO, the Centers for Disease Control, and the International Union Against Cancer conference.