A large proportion of esophageal cancer cases and the incidence difference between regions are attributable to lifestyle risk factors in China.

A population-based case-control study was conducted in a high-risk area (Dafeng) and a low-risk area (Ganyu) of Jiangsu province, China. In this analysis, the population attributable fraction (PAF) was calculated to quantify the etiology of risk factors; the relative attributable risk (RAR) was applied to explore how much of the incidence difference could be explained by variations in the distribution of risk factors. Results showed that unhealthy lifestyles accounted for a high fraction of esophageal cancer in China. Dissimilar distribution of several lifestyle factors, together with hereditary variations may be largely responsible for the incidence difference between areas.