• physical activity

Total and leisure-time physical activity are inversely associated with risk of liver cancer, non-alcoholic liver disease and gallbladder disease. This has been shown in Western populations but until now not in the Chinese and other Asian populations. In BJSM, Pang et al 1 address this gap by reporting a large prospective study that involved 461K participants in the China Kadoorie Biobank (CKB). These participants, aged from 30 to 79 years from 10 regions of China, were recruited before they had cancer and hepatobillary diseases. They were then prospectively followed up for 10 years.

We consider Pang et al have made at least four valuable contributions . First, they found that the total and occupational physical activity was inversely associated with hospitalised non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, cirrhosis and liver cancer.1 These results are consistent with those reports done in Western countries.2 Second, they found that viral hepatitis was inversely associated with total and occupational physical activity in the CKB cohort.1 Third, they revealed that the total and occupational physical activity was inversely associated with gallstone disease and gallbladder cancer.1 This is consistent with the previous studies performed in Western populations.2 However, excessive volumes of physical …