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Objective The number of liver cancer patients in China accounts for more than half of the world. However, China currently lacks national, multicenter economic burden data, and meanwhile, measuring the differences among different subgroups will be informative to formulate corresponding policies in liver cancer control. Thus, the aim of the study was to measure the economic burden of liver cancer by various subgroups. Methods A hospital-based, multicenter and cross-sectional survey was conducted during 2012-2014, covering 39 hospitals and 21 project sites in 13 provinces across China. The questionnaire covers clinical information, sociology, expenditure, and related variables. All expenditure data were reported in Chinese Yuan (CNY) using 2014 values. Results A total of 2,223 liver cancer patients were enrolled, of whom 59.61% were late-stage cases (III-IV), and 53.8% were hepatocellular carcinoma. The average total expenditure per liver cancer patient was estimated as 53,220 CNY, including 48,612 CNY of medical expenditures (91.3%) and 4,608 CNY of non-medical expenditures (8.7%). The average total expenditures in stage I, II, III and stage IV were 52,817 CNY, 50,877 CNY, 50,678 CNY and 54,089 CNY (P>0.05), respectively. Non-medical expenditures including additional meals, additional nutrition care, transportation, accommodation and hired informal nursing were 1,453 CNY, 839 CNY, 946 CNY, 679 CNY and 200 CNY, respectively. The one-year out-of-pocket expenditure of a newly diagnosed patient was 24,953 CNY, and 77.2% of the patients suffered an unmanageable financial burden. Multivariate analysis showed that overall expenditure differed in almost all subgroups (P

A substantial proportion of liver cancers is attributable to chronic infection with hepatitis B and C (HBV/HCV). Liver cancer could become the second cancer, after cervical, to be effectively controlled globally, if proven interventions such as vaccination can be implemented on a large scale. In 2018, the global mortality rate for liver cancer was estimated to be 8.5 per 100 000 individuals. Given patterns of HBV infection and immigration across countries, liver cancer control requires combined, global action. Liver cancer trends vary between countries, in some Western countries, the incidence rates were relatively low but have increased in recent decades; conversely, in several Asian countries, the incidence rates have decreased over time. China has in the past contributed more than half of the global burden of liver cancer but more recently a national decline in liver cancer incidence has been observed. Here, we review the liver cancer burden and exposure to risk factors in China, compared to other countries. We also review the implementation status for primary and secondary prevention interventions and major outcomes achieved over the past three decades. Using Bayesian age-period-cohort analysis, we examine recent trends and based on these, predict that by 2050, the incidence of liver cancer in China could fall by half. We additionally survey the literature to identify current research needs, and review relevant national policies on liver cancer control in China. A comprehensive set of interventions is proposed to progress toward the long-term goal of liver cancer elimination based on the natural history and evidence-based interventions.

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.

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.

Background Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women in China; however, a routine screening programme is currently not available. The aim of this study was to develop a novel model to estimate the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of several screening strategies for women living in urban areas. Methods We developed a state-transition natural history model of breast cancer and validated the model with multiple outcomes for Chinese women living in urban areas. A total of 23 screening scenarios were considered with different screening techniques, ages, and frequencies. We evaluated the reduction of breast cancer mortality for each screening scenario compared with no screening. By integrating population-specific cost and utility scores, we calculated the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) in terms of the cost per quality-adjusted life-year gained. Findings In the natural history model, the breast cancer incidence rate was estimated as 36·0 cases per 100 000 women and breast cancer mortality rate as 6·8 deaths per 100 000 women, which approximated reported rates from national cancer registries (incidence 34·9–36·5 cases per 100 000 women and 6·8–7·0 deaths per 100 000 women). Meanwhile, the modelled stage distribution and life expectancy were substantially similar to reported values. Compared with no screening, the breast cancer mortality of all screening scenarios decreased by 4·1–53·6%. The ICERs of 16 of the 23 scenarios was lower than the triple of the GDP per capita of China in 2018 (193 932 Chinese Yuan), indicating cost-effectiveness. At the national level, the biennial series-parallel strategy (ultrasound, followed by the mammography when suspected for women aged 40–44 years, and ultrasound combined with mammography for women aged 45–69 years) was the most cost-effective strategy, while the optimal screening interval differed with economic development at the provincial level. Interpretation We developed a well calibrated natural history model of breast cancer for Chinese women living in urban areas. Generally, breast cancer screening is cost-effective in urban China. The biennial series-parallel strategy is recommended at the national level, but at the provincial level, the optimal strategy should be determined by balancing health gains and resources. Funding National Natural Science Foundation of China (81773521 and 81402740) and National Health Commission of the People's Republic of China.

The self-controlling feedback control method requires an external periodic oscillator with special design, which is technically challenging. This paper proposes a chaos control method based on time series non-uniform rational B-splines (SNURBS for short) signal feedback. It first builds the chaos phase diagram or chaotic attractor with the sampled chaotic time series and any target orbit can then be explicitly chosen according to the actual demand. Second, we use the discrete timing sequence selected from the specific target orbit to build the corresponding external SNURBS chaos periodic signal, whose difference from the system current output is used as the feedback control signal. Finally, by properly adjusting the feedback weight, we can quickly lead the system to an expected status. We demonstrate both the effectiveness and efficiency of our method by applying it to two classic chaotic systems, i.e., the Van der Pol oscillator and the Lorenz chaotic system. Further, our experimental results show that compared with delayed feedback control, our method takes less time to obtain the target point or periodic orbit (from the starting point) and that its parameters can be fine-tuned more easily.

The presence of missing value in time series increase the difficulty of data analysis. The traditional interpolation method is mainly aim at simple numeric data missing, which without considering the correlation among data points of actual time series, so it is easy to distort the hidden relationship among data points. Therefore, based on the Snurbs (series-Non-Uniform Rational B-Spline) interpolation method, we present a Snurbs interpolation method, which further combines window interpolation adjustment based on the time series data correlation. The new algorithm was applied to two real world hydrological time series, which represent the periodic and aperiodic time series respectively. The experiment results showed that our method is better than other traditional methods, such as Linear interpolation, Pchip interpolation and Cubic Spline interpolation. We can always make interpolation curve better approximate to actual time series curve by i) selecting suitable weight for data points, ii) and further doing window interpolation adjustment.