The Chinese epidemiological approach of nasopharyngeal carcinoma research and control.

Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), the major cancer killer in Cantonese Chinese, represents one of the three cancer research priorities in China. Apart from some fundamental research projects on the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), their main efforts are epidemiologically and clinically oriented. Major surveys in GuangDong and GuangXi provinces showed that high EBV/IgA/VCA serum levels can detect NPC at an early stage of the disease. Characterization of "precancerous lesions" in the nasopharynx and among the EBV/IgA positive individuals is in progress in the Zangwu county of the GuangXi Autonomous Region. Preventive anti-viral intervention in these individuals is being discussed. Search for genetic and environmental chemical carcinogens is also carried out. This Chinese epidemiological approach complements well the fundamental Western studies on EBV and NPC.