This is the first reported case-control study of HCC in Henan, China. This study provides further evidence that chronic HBV infection is strongly associated with the development of HCC among this population. Our results have demonstrated that HCV and HBV infection are independent and probably additive risk factors for HCC.

Abstract. A case-control study was carried out to investigate risk factors in the development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in Henan, China. A total of 152 patients with HCC and 115 control patients with nonhepatic disease were included in this study. The risk factor analysis indicated that individual history of liver disease (odds ratio [OR] ϭ 11.77; 95% confidence interval [CI] ϭ 3.94-35.18), family history of liver disease (OR ϭ 11.80, 95% CI ϭ 2.75-50.61), drinking of alcohol (OR ϭ 1.06, 95% CI ϭ 1.02-1.10), corn consumption (OR ϭ 19.43, 95% CI ϭ 3.67-102.98), peanut and peanut oil consumption (OR ϭ 13.75, 95% CI ϭ 3.69-51.16), and infection with hepatitis B virus (HBV) (OR ϭ 44.59, 95% CI ϭ 12.54-158.49) were significantly different between the case and control groups (P Ͻ 0.01). We also found that there was a dose-response relationship between drinking of alcohol and development of HCC, whereas heavy drinkers experienced an approximately 3-4-fold risk increase compared with nondrinkers. In further analysis, a 1:1 pair-matched case-control study was performed. One hundred thirteen of 152 HCC patients were randomly selected to be pair-matched by sex and age (Ϯ 5 years) with the controls with nonhepatic disease. The results from the 1:1 pair-matched case-control study were consistent with the results from the group-matched case-control study. The findings of this study suggest that hepatitis virus (HBV, HCV) infection, drinking of alcohol, and dietary exposure to aflatoxin are likely etiologic agents of HCC in Henan, China.Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common cancers in the world, particularly in Africa and Asia.

BackgroundAlthough several studies have reported the direct cost of oral cancer (OC), little research has invested the factors that could influence the costs of OC patient. This study analyzes the epidemiological characteristics and the direct cost of OC. More specifically, the study examines the relationship between patients' medical costs and influencing factors of epidemiology.MethodsAll patients encountered from January 2007 to December 2007 at the School of Stomatology of the Fourth Military Medical University (FMMU) in China with diagnosis of oral cancer have been selected. Medical hospitalization days (MHD) and cost per patient (CPP) of the samples have been calculated for different patient groups, and the results have been compared using statistical methods.ResultsA total of 456 oral cancer patients have been selected in this study. The epidemical characteristics are as follows: female/male 176/280; squamous cell carcinoma (SCC)/adenocarcinoma/sarcoma/lymphoma/other types 246/127/40/27/16; stage I/II/III/IV 90/148/103/115; smoker/non-smoker 136/320; rural/urban patients 82/374. Of all the patients, 82.24% were over 40 years of age. Rural patients were significantly younger than urban patients. SCC was the majority histology in older patients, while sarcoma was more common in younger patients. 372 of the patients received treatment and 84 gave up any treatment after diagnosis. Treatment cost accounted for majority of the payment. The CPP and MHD of patients in late clinical stage were higher than that of patient in early stage.ConclusionGender, smoking habit and age older than 40 years are the epidemiological risk factors for oral cancer. Lack of medicare, smoking habit, late clinical stage and SCC are the high economic factors for patient medical cost.

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Background: Studies showed that thyroid function plays an important role in the pathology of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). However, changes in brain thyroid hormone and related receptors in the early stage of AD were rarely reported. The aim of this study was to explore the relationship between the early stage of AD and local thyroid hormone and its receptors in the brain. Methods: The animal model was established by stereotactic injection of okadaic acid (OA) into hippocampal region for the experiment, and 0.9% NS for the control. Blood sample from each mouse was collected and then the mice were sacrificed and the brain tissue was collected for detecting free triiodothyronine (FT3), free thyroid hormone (FT4), and thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH) and phosphorylated tau, amyloid-β (Aβ) and thyroid hormone receptors (THRs) in the hippocampus of the mice were detected as well. Results: Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay showed that compared with the control, FT3, FT4, TSH and TRH in brain were significantly increased in the experimental group; in the serum, FT4, TSH and TRH were increased, while FT3 had no change; western blot analysis indicated that the expression of THR α and β in the hippocampus of the experimental group was significantly higher than that of the control. Conclusion: Based on the results of this study, a mouse AD model can be established successfully by injecting a small dose of OA into the hippocampus. We speculate that early AD brain and circulating thyroid dysfunction may be an early local and systemic stress repair response.

Focal nodular hyperplasia (FNH), a benign lesion of the liver, is characterized by hepatocyte hyperplasia and a central stellate scar. FNH is relatively prevalent in healthy adults, but it is uncommon for FNH to be diagnosed in children. Herein, we report the case of a 6-year-old child (male) with a huge FNH. The child presented to the clinic with a two-year history of a hepatic space-occupying lesion. The physical examination and liver function testing were near-normal. The abdominal ultrasound scan showed a 6.1*5.2 cm lesion with an inhomogeneous and welldemarcated low echo in the right lobe of the liver. On computed tomography (CT) imaging, a plain scan displayed a 7.1*6.4 cm circular shadow with a slightly low density and a central star-like scar in the right hepatic lobe. The tumor showed clear enhancement in the arterial phase and slightly decreased enhancement in the venous phase. As a result of uncertainty in the imaging and needle biopsy results, this child underwent surgical resection of the tumor. After surgery, we found that the tumor was shown to be enlarged in the right posterior liver, well-defined, yellow-totan in color, and 11*8*7 cm in size, which is larger than previously reported. The histopathologic evaluation of the surgical specimen was consistent with focal nodular hyperplasia (FNH).