Background: The aspartate transaminase (AST)‐to‐alanine aminotransferase (ALT) ratio, which is used to measure liver injury, has been found to be associated with some chronic diseases and mortality. However, its relevance to cancer incidence resulting from population‐based prospective studies has rarely been reported. In this study, we investigated the correlation of the AST/ALT ratio as a possible predictor of mortality and cancer incidence.Methods: A total of 9,946 participants fulfilled the inclusion criteria for a basic public health service project of the Health Checkup Program conducted by the BaiYun Community Health Service Center, Taizhou. Deceased participants and cancer incident cases were from The Taizhou Chronic Disease Information Management System. Odds ratios (ORs) and interval of quartile range (IQR) computed by logistic regression analysis and cumulative incidence rate were calculated by the Kaplan–Meier survival method and compared with log‐rank test statistics.Results: Serum ALT and AST levels were both increased in patients with chronic diseases, but the ratio of AST/ALT was generally decreased. The cancer incident cases (488 new cases) had a greater baseline ratio (median =1.23, IQR: 0.96–1.54) than noncancer cases (median =1.15, IQR: 0.91–1.44). Compared to the first quartile of the AST/ALT ratio, the population in the top quartile had a higher cumulative cancer incidence rate (7.54% vs. 4.44%) during follow‐up period. Furthermore, an elevated AST/ALT ratio increased the risk of all‐cause mortality.Conclusions: The ratio of AST/ALT is a potential biomarker to assess healthy conditions and long‐term mortality. Especially for cancer, the AST/ALT ratio not only increases at baseline but also predicts the future development of cancer. The clinical value and potential mechanism deserve further research.

Background: The assessment of long-term survival of lung cancer patients based on data from population-based caner registries, using period analysis, was scarce in China. We aimed to accurately assess the long-term survival of lung cancer patients, and to predict the long-term survival in the future, using cancer registry data from Taizhou City, eastern China. Methods: Four cancer registries with high-quality data were selected. Patients diagnosed with lung cancer during 2004–2018 were included. The long-term survival was evaluated using period analysis, with further stratification by sex, age at diagnosis and region. Additionally, projected 5-year relative survival (RS) of lung cancer patients for 2019-2023 was evaluated, using model-based period analysis. Results: The 5-year RS of lung cancer patients diagnosed during 2014–2018 was 40.2% (31.5% for men and 56.2% for women). A moderate age gradient was observed for the period estimate, with the estimate decreasing from 50.5 to 26.5% in the age group of 15–44 years and ≥75 years, respectively. The 5-year RS of urban area was higher than that of rural area (52.3% vs. 38.9%). The overall projected 5-year RS of lung cancer patients was 52.7% for 2019–2023, with estimate of 43.0 and 73.2% for men and women, respectively. A moderate age gradient was also observed for the projected estimate. Moreover, estimate reached nearly 50% for rural and urban areas. Conclusion: Period analysis tended to provide the up-to-date and precise survival estimates for lung cancer patients, which is worth further application, and provides important evidence for prevention and intervention of lung cancer.

Objectives: While timely assessment of long-term survival for patients with cervical cancer is essential for the evaluation of early detection and screening programs for cervical cancer, those data are extremely scarce in China. We aimed to timely and accurately assess long-term survival for patients with cervical cancer in eastern China, using cancer registry data from Taizhou, eastern China.Methods: Patients diagnosed with cervical cancer during 2004–2018 from four cancer registries with high-quality data from Taizhou, eastern China were included. A period analysis was used to calculate the 5-year relative survival (RS) overall and on stratification by sex, age at diagnosis, and region. Additionally, the projected 5-year relative survival (RS) of patients with cervical cancer during 2019–2023 was evaluated, using a model-based period analysis.Results: Overall 5-year RS for patients with cervical cancer during 2014–2018 reached 90.9%. When stratified by age at diagnosis, we found a clear age gradient for 5-year RS, declining from 95.6% for age 74 years, while urban areas had higher 5-year RS compared to rural areas (92.9 vs. 88.6%). We found a clear increasing trend of 5-year RS during 2004–2018 overall and on stratification by region and age at diagnosis. The projected overall 5-year RS is expected to reach 94.2% for the period 2019–2023.Conclusions: We found that, for the first time in China, using period analysis, the most up-to-date (during 2014–2018) 5-year RS for patients with cervical cancer reached 90.9%. Our data have important implications for the timely evaluation of early detection and screening programs for patients with cervical cancer in eastern China.

Objective: Ovarian cancer is a deadly gynecologic malignancy with a poor prognosis. It is essential to evaluate the early detection and screening programs of ovarian cancer via timely assessment of long-time survival, particularly in China where those data are incredibly limited. Here, we aimed to provide timely and accurately assessment of long-term survival estimate of ovarian cancer patients from eastern China. Methods: Data of 770 ovarian cancer patients diagnosed between 2004–2018 were obtained from four cancer registries in Taizhou, eastern China, were included. We used period analysis to calculate five-year relative survival (RS) of aforementioned ovarian cancer patients for overall and the stratification by age at diagnosis and region. Results: Our findings demonstrated that the overall five-year RS for ovarian cancer patients in Taizhou between 2014 and 2018 was 69.2%, while urban areas were higher compared to rural areas (77.6% vs. 64.9%). We also observed a significant age gradient with the five-year RS decreasing from 79.6% for age group < 55 years to 66.9% for age group > 74 years. Furthermore, we identified a clear upward trend of five-year RS over the study period, both overall and stratified by region and age at diagnosis. Conclusion: This is the first study in China using period analysis to provide the most up-to-date five-year RS for ovarian cancer patients from Taizhou, eastern China, which reaches 69.2% during 2014–2018. Our results provide valuable information for timely assessment of early detection and screening programs for ovarian cancer in eastern China.

Objective: To evaluate the associations between lipid-related metabolic indicators and incident type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Methods: A diabetes family cohort study of 3,726 participants was conducted in Taizhou from May to October 2021 to track incident T2DM cases. Lipid metabolism indicators included triglycerides (TG), total cholesterol (TC), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), triglyceride-glucose (TyG) and its related indices, Chinese Visceral Adiposity Index (CVAI), and homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR). Mixed-effects Cox proportional hazards models, within-family Cox models, and quartile analyses were performed to examine the associations between these indicators and incident T2DM. Results: Among 1,257 participants without diabetes at baseline, 68 developed incident T2DM during the average follow-up of 3.92 years. Higher levels of TyG (HR = 1.758, 95% CI: 1.182–2.616), TyG-BMI (HR = 1.007, 95% CI: 1.002–1.013), TyG-WHtR (HR = 2.108, 95% CI: 1.468–3.027), TyG-WC (HR = 1.005, 95% CI: 1.003–1.007), CVAI (HR = 1.013, 95% CI: 1.006–1.020), and HOMA-IR (HR = 1.195, 95% CI: 1.038–1.376) were significantly associated with an increased risk of incident T2DM, whereas traditional lipid indicators showed no significant associations. These findings were consistent in within-family analyses. Furthermore, dose-response relationships were observed between TyG, TyG-WHtR, TyG-WC, CVAI and incident T2DM. Conclusions: In conclusion, TyG-related indices, CVAI, and HOMA-IR were significantly associated with incident T2DM in this diabetes family-based cohort. These composite indicators may be useful for the early identification of high-risk individuals and for informing targeted prevention strategies. Clinical trial number: Not applicable.