ABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the clinical epidemiological characteristics and the major causes of primary liver cancer (PLC) in Xinjiang region.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The clinical epidemiological information on the first page of case history of 3602 PLC patients, which were diagnosed in our hospital from January 2002 to December 2010, were retrospectively reviewed and analyzed.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Among the 3602 cases, the men/women gender ratio was 3.72:1; The proportion of Han, Uighur, Kazakh, and other nationality (Hui, Mongolian, Manchu, Xibo nationality) was 81.95%, 9.30%, 4.14%, 2.89%, and 1.72%, respectively. The comparative difference between Uighur and Han nationalities was significant (P < 0.05). The hepatitis virus detection results showed that HBs-Ag was positive in 1680 cases (59.57%), HCV-Ab was positive in 229 cases (9.41%). Virus detection was negative in 888 patients (24.65%). The hepatitis B virus positive rate in Uygur patients was 36.13% and in Kazakh patients was 40.37%, both significantly lower than that in patients of Han nationality (63.18%, P < 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>In Xinjiang region, the infection rate of hepatitis B virus in Uygur and Kazak people is significantly lower than that in Han people. The distribution of gender and age does not differ significantly among different nationalities, compared with those in other regions. The prevalence of primary liver cancer in Xinjiang region has certain regional characteristics and features.</p>