Medical expenditure for lung cancer in China: a multicenter, hospital-based retrospective survey.

BACKGROUND: Lung cancer is the most prevalent cancer, and the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in China. The aim of this study was to estimate the direct medical expenditure incurred for lung cancer care and analyze the trend therein for the period 2002-2011 using nationally representative data in China METHODS: This study was based on 10-year, multicenter retrospective expenditure data collected from hospital records, covering 15,437 lung cancer patients from 13 provinces diagnosed during the period 2002-2011. All expenditure data were adjusted to 2011 to eliminate the effects of inflation using China's annual consumer price index. RESULTS: The direct medical expenditure for lung cancer care (in 2011) was 39,015 CNY (US$6,041) per case, with an annual growth rate of 7.55% from 2002 to 2011. Drug costs were the highest proportionally in the total medical expenditure (54.27%), followed by treatment expenditure (14.32%) and surgical expenditure (8.10%). Medical expenditures for the disease varied based on region, hospital level, type, and stage. CONCLUSION: The medical expenditure for lung cancer care is substantial in China. Drug costs and laboratory test are the main factors increasing medical costs.

Effects of Outdoor Temperature on Blood Pressure in a Prospective Cohort of Northwest China.

OBJECTIVE: The relationship between outdoor temperature and blood pressure (BP) has been inconclusive. We analyzed data from a prospective cohort study in northwestern China to investigate the effect of outdoor temperature on BP and effect modification by season. METHODS: A total of 32,710 individuals who participated in both the baseline survey and the first follow-up in 2011-2015 were included in the study. A linear mixed-effect model and generalized additive mixed model (GAMM) were applied to estimate the association between outdoor temperature and BP after adjusting for confounding variables. RESULTS: The mean differences in systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) between summer and winter were 3.5 mmHg and 2.75 mmHg, respectively. After adjusting for individual characteristics, meteorological factors and air pollutants, a significant increase in SBP and DBP was observed for lag 06 day and lag 04 day, a 0.28 mmHg (95% CI: 0.27-0.30) per 1 °C decrease in average temperature for SBP and a 0.16 mmHg (95% CI: 0.15-0.17) per 1 °C decrease in average temperature for DBP, respectively. The effects of the average temperature on both SBP and DBP were stronger in summer than in other seasons. The effects of the average temperature on BP were also greater if individuals were older, male, overweight or obese, a smoker or drinker, or had cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), hypertension, and diabetes. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrated a significant negative association between outdoor temperature and BP in a high-altitude environment of northwest China. Moreover, BP showed a significant seasonal variation. The association between BP and temperature differed by season and individuals' demographic characteristics (age, gender, BMI), unhealthy behaviors (smoking and alcohol consumption), and chronic disease status (CVDs, hypertension, and diabetes).

Health-related quality of life of patients with colorectal neoplasms in China: A multicenter cross-sectional survey.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: This study aimed to clarify health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of patients with colorectal precancer and colorectal cancer (CRC) in China and to better understand related utility scores. METHODS: A hospital-based cross-sectional survey was conducted in precancer and CRC patients from 2012 to 2014, covering 12 provinces in China. HRQoL was assessed with EuroQol 5-Dimensions 3-Levels. Utility scores were derived using Chinese value set. A multivariate regression model was established to explore potential predictors of utility scores. RESULTS: A total of 376 precancer (mean age 58.7 years, 61.2% men) and 2470 CRC patients (mean age 58.6 years, 57.6% men) were included. In five dimensions, there was a certain percentage of problem reported among precancer (range: 12.0% to 36.7%) and CRC (range: 32.4% to 50.3%) patients, with pain/discomfort being the most serious dimension. Utility scores of precancer and CRC patients were 0.870 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.855-0.886) and 0.751 (95% CI, 0.742-0.759), both of which were lower than those of general Chinese population (0.960 [95% CI, 0.960-0.960]). Utilities for patients at stage I to stage IV were 0.742 (95% CI, 0.715-0.769), 0.722 (95% CI, 0.705-0.740), 0.756 (95% CI, 0.741-0.772), and 0.745 (95% CI, 0.742-0.767), respectively. Multivariate analysis showed that therapeutic regimen, time point of the interview, education, occupation, annual household income, and geographic region were associated with utilities of CRC patients. CONCLUSION: Health-related quality of life of both precancer and CRC patients in China declined considerably. Utility scores differed by sociodemographic and clinical characteristics, and findings of these utilities may facilitate implementation of further cost-utility evaluations.

Environmental heavy metals and cardiovascular diseases: Status and future direction.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) and environmental degradation are leading global health problems of our time. Recent studies have linked exposure to heavy metals to the risks of CVD and diabetes, particularly in populations from low- and middle-income countries, where concomitant rapid development occurs. In this review, we 1) assessed the totality, quantity, and consistency of the available epidemiological studies, linking heavy metal exposures to the risk of CVD (including stroke and coronary heart disease); 2) discussed the potential biological mechanisms underlying some tantalizing observations in humans; and 3) identified gaps in our knowledge base that must be investigated in future work. An accumulating body of evidence from both experimental and observational studies implicates exposure to heavy metals, in a dose-response manner, in the increased risk of CVD. The limitations of most existing studies include insufficient statistical power, lack of comprehensive assessment of exposure, and cross-sectional design. Given the widespread exposure to heavy metals, an urgent need has emerged to investigate these putative associations of environmental exposures, either independently or jointly, with incident CVD outcomes prospectively in well-characterized cohorts of diverse populations, and to determine potential strategies to prevent and control the impacts of heavy metal exposure on the cardiometabolic health outcomes of individuals and populations.

Occupational exposure to heavy metals, alcohol intake, and risk of type 2 diabetes and prediabetes among Chinese male workers.

OBJECTIVE: Both exposure to heavy metals and alcohol intake have been related to the risk of type 2 diabetes (T2D). In this study, we aimed to assess the potential interactions between metal exposure and alcohol intake on the risk of T2D and prediabetes in a cohort of Chinese male workers. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of 26,008 Chinese male workers in an occupational cohort study from 2011 to 2013. We assessed metal exposure and alcohol consumption at baseline in these workers who were aged ≥20 years. Based on occupations which were categorized according to measured urine metal levels, multiple logistic regression analyses were used to evaluate the independent and joint effects of metal and alcohol exposure on the risk of T2D and prediabetes. RESULTS: Risks of T2D (P trend = 0.001) and prediabetes (P trend = 0.001) were significantly elevated with increasing number of standard drinks per week, years of drinking, and lifetime alcohol consumption. An adjusted odds ratio (OR) of 6.1 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 4.8-7.8) was observed for the smelting/refining workers (highest metal exposure levels) who had the highest lifetime alcohol consumption (>873 kg) (P interaction = 0.018), whereas no statistically significant joint effect was found for prediabetes (P interaction = 0.515). CONCLUSIONS: Both exposures to metal and heavy alcohol intake were associated with the risk of diabetes in this large cohort of male workers. There was a strong interaction between these two exposures in affecting diabetes risk that needs to be confirmed in future studies.

Short-term impact of breast cancer screening intervention on health-related quality of life in China: A multicentre cross-sectional survey.

OBJECTIVE: The impact of participating in breast cancer screening programmes on health-related quality of life (HRQoL)is poorly understood. METHODS: Based on a national breast cancer screening programme in China, a multicentre cross-sectional survey was conducted covering 12 provinces from September 2013 to December 2014. HRQoL of participants in the screening population and general population was evaluated by the three-levelEuroQol-five-Dimensions (EQ-5D-3L) instrument, and utility scores were generated through the Chinese value set. Univariate and multivariate regression analyses were performed to explore determinants of utility scores and anxiety/depression problems. RESULTS: For screening group and general population (n = 4756, mean age = 51.6 year old), the corresponding utility scores were 0.937 (95% CI, 0.933-0.941) and 0.953 (0.949-0.957) (P < .001). Pain/discomfort and anxiety/depression were the most common reported in both groups (51.4% and 34.3%, P < .001). Utility scores at prescreening, in-screening, and postscreening interview timings were 0.928 (0.921-0.935), 0.958 (0.948-0.969), and 0.938 (0.933-0.943), respectively (P < .001); the corresponding proportions of anxiety/depression reporting were 25.9%, 16.3%, and 21.1%, respectively (P = .004). Interview timing, geographical region, and insurance status were associated with HRQoL and anxiety/depression in women at high-risk of breast cancer. CONCLUSIONS: Utility scores of screening participants were significantly lower than that of general population in China, but the difference may be clinically insignificant. Further cohort studies using HRQoL measurements are needed.

Total cholesterol to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio is a significant predictor of nonalcoholic fatty liver: Jinchang cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Some studies found out that TC/HDL-C ratio is a predictor of Cardiovascular disease (CVD) and Nonalcoholic fatty liver (NAFLD) is related to CVD. And some researches have already studied that Apolipoprotein B to Apolipoprotein A1 ratio (ApoB/ApoA1) and Triglyceride to High-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio (TG/HDL-C) were both related with CVD and NAFLD, but few studied the association between TC/HDL-C ratio and NAFLD. So, we suspected the ratio was also related to NAFLD. The research aims to study the predictive value of TC/HDL-C to NAFLD and to help the early detection of NAFLD. METHODS: Based on the Jinchang Cohort, the study contained 32,121 participants. We assessed the incidence of NAFLD by the quartiles of TC, HDL-C and TC/HDL-C. Then, the does-response relationship between these indicators and the risk of NAFLD was obtained. Finally, the receiver operator characteristic curve (ROC) was applied to decide the predictive value of TC/HDL-C. RESULTS: Among the study participants, the cumulative incidence of NAFLD was 6.30% and the rate of dyslipidemia was 40.37%. The biochemical indicators of NAFLD had a difference with general population. The incidence of NAFLD raised with the quartiles of TC, TG and LDL-C raising, while decreased with the HDL-C' quartiles raising. After controlling confounding factors, TC and TC/HD-C had a positive relationship with NAFLD, while HDL-C had the opposite. Finally, the ROC analysis showed the area under the curve (AUC) of TC/HDL-C (0.645) was greater than TC (0.554), HDL-C (0.627) and Apolipoprotein B to Apolipoprotein A1 (ApoB/ApoA1) (0.613). CONCLUSIONS: The TC/HDL-C ratio has significant predictive value to NAFLD.

Medical expenses of urban Chinese patients with stomach cancer during 2002-2011: a hospital-based multicenter retrospective study.

BACKGROUND: In China, stomach cancer is the third most common cancer and the third leading cause of cancer death. Few studies have examined Chinese stomach cancer patients' medical expenses and their associated trends. The Cancer Screening Program in Urban China (CanSPUC) is a Major Public Health Project funded by the central government. Through this project, we have extracted patients' medical expenses from hospital billing data to examine the costs of the first course treatments (which refers to 2 months before and 10 months after the date of cancer diagnosis) in Chinese patients with stomach cancer and the associated trends. METHODS: The expense data of 14,692 urban Chinese patients with stomach cancer were collected from 40 hospitals in 13 provinces. We estimated the inflation-adjusted medical expenses per patient during 2002-2011. We described the time trends of medical expenses at the country-level, and those trends by subgroup, and analyzed the compositions of medical expenses. We constructed the Generalized Linear Mixed (GLM) regression model with Poisson distribution to examine the factors that were associated with medical expenses per patient. RESULTS: The average medical expenses of the first course treatments were about 43,249 CNY (6851 USD) in 2011, more than twice of that in 2002. The expenses increased by an average annual rate of 7.4%. Longer stay during hospitalization and an increased number of episodes of care are the two main contributors to the expense increase. The upward trend of medical expenses was observed in almost all patient subgroups. Drug expenses accounted for over half of the medical expenses. CONCLUSIONS: The average medical expenses of the first course (2 months before and 10 months after the date of cancer diagnosis) treatments per stomach cancer patient in urban China in 2011 were doubled during the previous 10 years, and about twice as high as the per capita disposable income of urban households in the same year. Such high expenses indicate that it makes economic sense to invest in cancer prevention and control in China.

Health-related quality of life and utility scores of patients with breast neoplasms in China: A multicenter cross-sectional survey.

BACKGROUND: Health-related quality of life and utility scores of patients with breast cancer and precancerous lesions are sparse in China. This study aimed to derive utility scores of patients with breast cancer and precancer in China. MATERIAL AND METHODS: An interviewer-administered cross-sectional survey was conducted in 12 provinces across China from 2013 to 2014. The three-level EuroQol-5-Dimension instrument was used to evaluate quality of life, and utility scores were generated using the Chinese value set. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to explore the determinants of utility scores. RESULTS: In total, 2626 breast cancer and 471 precancer patients were included. Mean age was 49.1 for breast cancer and 41.4 years for precancer (p < 0.001). Among the five dimensions, pain/discomfort was the most reported problem, 53.9% in breast cancer and 29.3% in precancer patients. Mean (95% CI) utility scores for breast cancer and precancer patients were estimated as 0.887 (0.875-0.899) and 0.781 (0.774-0.788), and the scores of breast cancer at stage-I, stage-II, stage-III and stage-IV were 0.789 (0.774-0.805), 0.793 (0.783-0.802), 0.774 (0.759-0.788) and 0.686 (0.654-0.717), respectively. Mean (95% CI) visual analogue scale scores for breast cancer and precancer were 75.6 (74.0-77.3) and 72.8 (72.3-73.3). Multiple regression showed advanced clinical stage, lower educational level, lower household income, surgery treatment, and undergoing treatment were independently associated with lower utility scores for breast cancer patients. CONCLUSION: The utility scores deteriorate with the severity of breast neoplasms. Detailed utility scores of breast cancer and precancer are fundamental for further cost-utility analysis in China.

Medical expenditure for liver cancer in urban China: A 10-year multicenter retrospective survey (2002-2011).

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to understand the medical expenditure for liver cancer during 2002-2011 in urban areas of China. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This is a retrospective study. Based on a stratified cluster sampling method, a medical expenditure survey collected basic personal information from related medical records. Two-tailed independent sample t-test, variance analysis, and Student-Newman-Keuls Tests were used in cost analysis for the corresponding data types. RESULTS: A total of 12,342 liver cancer patients were included in the analysis. Overall average medical expenditure per case for liver cancer diagnosis and treatment in China has increased from ¥21, 950 to ¥40, 386 over the study period. For each liver cancer patient diagnosed between 2009 and 2011, the average expenditures were 29,332 CNY for stage I, 35,754 CNY for stage II, 34,288 CNY for stage III, and 30,275 CNY for stage IV diseases (P < 0.001). Pharmaceuticals accounted for the biggest part of the medical expenditure and it rose from 48.01% to 52.96% during these ten years, and the share of nursing fee expenses was the lowest (around 1%). Over the entire 10-year data period, the per capita expenditure of the east region (32,983 CNY) was higher than that of the west region (26,219 CNY) and slightly higher than the central region (31,018 CNY, P < 0.001). DISCUSSION: As a major cancer in China, liver cancer accounts for a large portion of health economic burden and its medical expenditure is heavy for families. Early diagnosis and treatment for liver cancer will save medical expenditure. CONCLUSION: The economic burden of liver cancer is high in China and related medical expenditure has increased.

[Establishing a Combination Model in Predicting Mortality of Lung Cancer].

OBJECTIVE: To identify a good combination model for predicting the mortality of lung cancer. METHODS: Mortality data of lung cancer from 2001-2013 were used to test three prediction model: dynamic series, exponential smoothing, and Joinpoint regression. Weight coefficients of the combination models were calculated using the arithmetic average method, the variance inverse method, the mean square error inverse method, and the simple weighted average method. RESULTS: The exponential smoothing model had the highest accuracy (79.67%) of prediction, followed by the Joinpoint linear model (74.27%). The combination of these two models resulted in better results. The arithmetic average method and the mean square error inverse method had the best prediction, with an accuracy of 86.87% and 85.80%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The combined model has higher accuracy than the single models in predicting the mortality of lung cancer.

Medical and non-medical expenditure for breast cancer diagnosis and treatment in China: a multicenter cross-sectional study.

AIM: We aimed to assess economic burden of breast cancer (BC) diagnosis and treatment in China through a multicenter cross-sectional study, and to obtain theoretical evidence for policy-making. METHODS: This survey was conducted in 37 hospital centers across 13 provinces in China from September 2012 to December 2014. We collected information on the subject characteristics. We then assessed the medical and non-medical expenditure for BC diagnosis and treatment, factors influencing the average case expense, variations between medical and non-medical expenditure at different clinical stages, economic impact of overall expenditure in newly diagnosed course after reimbursement to the patient's family, composition of non-medical expenditure and time loss for the patient and family. RESULTS: Among 2746 women with BC (72.6% were admitted to specialized hospitals), the overall average expenditure was US $8450 (medical expenditure: $7527; non-medical expenditure: $922). Significant differences were found among the overall expenditure in the four clinical stages (P < 0.0001); the expenditure was higher in stages III and IV than that in stages I and II, whereas the stage IV was the highest (P < 0.0001). Moreover, a higher self-reported predicted reimbursement ratio was associated with a less economic impact on the patient's family, and the average time lost was estimated as $1529. CONCLUSIONS: Early detection and treatment of breast cancer might be effective for decreasing the economic burden, because costs escalate as the degree of malignancy increases.

Estimation Study of New Cancer Cases and Deaths in Wuwei, Hexi Corridor Region, China, 2018.

Population-based cancer registration data were collected to estimate the cancer incidence and mortality in Wuwei, Hexi Corridor Region, China in 2018. We used the 2011-2013 data to predict the number of new cases and deaths in 2018 and the 2003-2013 data to analyze trends in cancer incidence and mortality. The goal is to enable cancer prevention and control directions. Our results indicated that stomach cancer is the most common cancer. For all cancers combined, the incidence and mortality rates showed significantly increasing trends (+2.63% per year; P < 0.05 and +1.9% per year; P < 0.05). This study revealed a significant cancer burden among the population of this area. Cancer screening and prevention should be performed after an epidemiological study of the cause of the cancer is completed.

Medical expenditure for esophageal cancer in China: a 10-year multicenter retrospective survey (2002-2011).

BACKGROUND: Esophageal cancer is associated with substantial disease burden in China, and data on the economic burden are fundamental for setting priorities in cancer interventions. The medical expenditure for the diagnosis and treatment of esophageal cancer in China has not been fully quantified. This study aimed to examine the medical expenditure of Chinese patients with esophageal cancer and the associated trends. METHODS: From 2012 to 2014, a hospital-based multicenter retrospective survey was conducted in 37 hospitals in 13 provinces/municipalities across China as a part of the Cancer Screening Program of Urban China. For each esophageal cancer patient diagnosed between 2002 and 2011, clinical information and expense data were extracted by using structured questionnaires. All expense data were reported in Chinese Yuan (CNY; 1 CNY = 0.155 USD) based on the 2011 value and inflated using the year-specific health care consumer price index for China. RESULTS: A total of 14,967 esophageal cancer patients were included in the analysis. It was estimated that the overall average expenditure per patient was 38,666 CNY, and an average annual increase of 6.27% was observed from 2002 (25,111 CNY) to 2011 (46,124 CNY). The average expenditures were 34,460 CNY for stage I, 39,302 CNY for stage II, 40,353 CNY for stage III, and 37,432 CNY for stage IV diseases (P < 0.01). The expenditure also differed by the therapy type, which was 38,492 CNY for surgery, 27,933 CNY for radiotherapy, and 27,805 CNY for chemotherapy (P < 0.05). Drugs contributed to 45.02% of the overall expenditure. CONCLUSIONS: These conservative estimates suggested that medical expenditures for esophageal cancer in China substantially increased in the last 10 years, treatment for early-stage esophageal cancer costs less than that for advanced cases, and spending on drugs continued to account for a considerable proportion of the overall expenditure.

Heavy Metal Assessment among Chinese Nonferrous Metal-exposed Workers from the Jinchang Cohort Study.

Environmental exposure to heavy metals has been linked to a wide range of human health hazards. We detected the levels of 15 metals in urine samples from 500 representative sub-samples in an ongoing occupational cohort study (Jinchang Cohort) to directly evaluate metal exposure levels. Fifteen metals, namely As, Ba, Be, Cd, Cs, Cr, Co, Cu, Pb, Mn, Ni, Se, Tl, U, and Zn, were detected by inductively coupled plasma quadruple mass spectrometry. The results showed that median creatinine adjustment and geometric mean urinary metal levels were higher in the heavy metal-exposed group, except Se and Zn, than other reported general or occupational populations. Further studies should address the effects of heavy metals on human health.

Expenditure and financial burden for the diagnosis and treatment of colorectal cancer in China: a hospital-based, multicenter, cross-sectional survey.

BACKGROUND: The increasing prevalence of colorectal cancer (CRC) in China and the paucity of information about relevant expenditure highlight the necessity of better understanding the financial burden and effect of CRC diagnosis and treatment. We performed a survey to quantify the direct medical and non-medical expenditure as well as the resulting financial burden of CRC patients in China. METHODS: We conducted a multicenter, cross-sectional survey in 37 tertiary hospitals in 13 provinces across China between 2012 and 2014. Each enrolled patient was interviewed using a structured questionnaire. All expenditure data were inflated to the 2014 Chinese Yuan (CNY; 1 CNY = 0.163 USD). We quantified the overall expenditure and financial burden and by subgroup (hospital type, age at diagnosis, sex, education, occupation, insurance type, household income, clinical stage, pathologic type, and therapeutic regimen). We then performed generalized linear modeling to determine the factors associated with overall expenditure. RESULTS: A total of 2356 patients with a mean age of 57.4 years were included, 57.1% of whom were men; 13.9% of patients had stage I cancer; and the average previous-year household income was 54,525 CNY. The overall average direct expenditure per patient was estimated to be 67,408 CNY, and the expenditures for stage I, II, III, and IV disease were 56,099 CNY, 59,952 CNY, 67,292 CNY, and 82,729 CNY, respectively. Non-medical expenditure accounted for 8.3% of the overall expenditure. The 1-year out-of-pocket expenditure of a newly diagnosed patient was 32,649 CNY, which accounted for 59.9% of their previous-year household income and caused 75.0% of families to suffer an unmanageable financial burden. Univariate analysis showed that financial burden and overall expenditure differed in almost all subgroups (P < 0.05), except for sex. Multivariate analysis showed that patients who were treated in specialized hospitals and those who were diagnosed with adenocarcinoma or diagnosed at a later stage were likely to spend more, whereas those with a lower household income and those who underwent surgery spent less (all P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: For patients in China, direct expenditure for the diagnosis and treatment of CRC seemed catastrophic, and non-medical expenditure was non-ignorable. The financial burden varied among subgroups, especially among patients with different clinical stages of disease, which suggests that, in China, CRC screening might be cost-effective.

The relationship between serum uric acid and metabolic syndrome in premenopausal and postmenopausal women in the Jinchang Cohort.

The aim of the study was to explore the association between serum uric acid (SUA) and metabolic syndrome (MetS) in premenopausal and postmenopausal women in the Jinchang Cohort. We studied 3808 female Jinchuan Nonferrous Metals Corporation workers aged 40-60 years. Cohort data from epidemiological surveys and medical exams were used. MetS was defined using the 2009 Joint Interim Society criteria. The relationship between SUA and MetS was evaluated using multiple logistic regression after adjusting for potential confounders. MetS and hyperuricemia were more prevalent in postmenopausal women than premenopausal ones (35.3% versus 15.2% and 9.2% versus 4.2%, respectively). Premenopausal and postmenopausal women with hyperuricemia had 2.81 (95% CI: 1.72-4.61) and 2.10 (95% CI: 1.44-3.08), respectively, times the odds of having MetS than their counterparts without hyperuricemia. Even within normal SUA quartiles, only premenopausal women in the highest and second-highest quartile had 3.57 (95% CI: 2.24-5.68) and 2.78 (95% CI: 1.71-4.50), respectively, times the odds of having MetS than those in the lowest quartile. Even in the normal range, the odds ratios for MetS increased gradually according to SUA levels in all women (Ptrend < 0.001). In conclusion, there was a significant correlation between SUA levels and MetS, and the association was stronger in premenopausal women than postmenopausal ones.

Dynamic Changes in DNA Damage and Repair Biomarkers with Employment Length among Nickel Smelting Workers.

Our study explored the dynamic changes in and the relationship between the DNA damage marker 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) and the DNA repair marker 8-hydroxyguanine DNA glycosidase 1 (hOGG1) according to the length of occupational employment in nickel smelting workers. One hundred forty nickel-exposed smelting workers and 140 age-matched unexposed office workers were selected from the Jinchang cohort. The 8-OHdG levels in smelting workers was significantly higher than in office workers (Z=-8.688, P<0.05) and the 8-OHdG levels among nickel smelting workers in the 10-14 y employment length category was significantly higher than among all peers. The hOGG1 levels among smelting workers were significantly lower than those of non-exposed workers (Z=-8.948, P<0.05). There were significant differences between employment length and hOGG1 levels, with subjects employed in nickel smelting for 10-14 y showing the highest levels of hOGG1. Correlation analysis showed positive correlations between 8-OHdG and hOGG1 levels (r=0.413; P<0.01). DNA damage was increased with employment length among nickel smelting workers and was related to the inhibition of hOGG1 repair capacity.