What best practices should be followed when using PHP to manage caching in web development?

When using PHP to manage caching in web development, it is important to follow best practices to ensure efficient and effective caching. This includes setting appropriate cache-control headers, using a combination of server-side and client-side caching techniques, and implementing cache invalidation strategies to ensure data consistency.

// Set appropriate cache-control headers
header('Cache-Control: max-age=3600'); // Cache for 1 hour

// Check if cached data exists
$cached_data = apc_fetch('my_cached_data');
if (!$cached_data) {
    // Generate or fetch data
    $data = fetch_data_from_database();

    // Store data in cache
    apc_store('my_cached_data', $data);
} else {
    // Use cached data
    $data = $cached_data;
}

// Output data
echo json_encode($data);