ObjectivesTo estimate the latest burden of disability adjusted life years (DALYs) for liver cancer in China and the long-term trend, and to make future prediction.MethodsBased on the visualization platform of Global Burden of Disease 2016, data on the DALYs for liver cancer in China was extracted. The very recent status in 2016 and the previous trend from 1990 to 2016 were described, using annualized rate of change (ARC). The burden from 2017 to 2050 was further predicted by combining the ARC and the Chinese population data projected by the United Nation.ResultsIn 2016, the total DALYs for liver cancer in China was estimated as 11 539 000 person years (accounting for 54.6% of the global burden), and years of life lost (YLLs) and years lived with disability (YLDs) contributed 98.9% and 1.1%, respectively. The age-standardized DALY rate was 844.1 per 100 000 (3.0 times of the global average) and the male-to-female ratio was 3.4. The DALY rate continuously increased from 1990–2016 (ARC=0.57%), particularly in recent 5 years (ARC=1.75%). Among the DALYs for all cancers, liver cancer contributed approximately 20% and constantly remained as the top 2 (ranking as the number one before year 2005). There were inverse trends in gender, with increasing in males and decreasing in females (ARC was 0.77% and –0.11%, respectively). Hepatitis B infection continually kept the leading cause of DALYs for liver cancer (accounting for nearly 57%), and the DALY rate was gradually increasing (ARC=0.43%). Although the peak age of DALY rate was stable at 65to 69 years, the peak age of the DALYs changed from 55 to 59 years in 1990 to 60 ~ 64 years in 2016. In 2050, the estimated DALYs for liver cancer in China will reach 14.37 million person years, 20.0% more than that in 2017.ConclusionsThe DALYs caused by liver cancer in China exceeds the overall burden of all other countries in the world, and accounts for 1/5 of DALYs for all cancers in local population. The burden in males has been continuously rising, and the leading cause remained unchanged as hepatitis B infection. With population aging, the DALYs for liver cancer in China will be incessant to increase, suggesting the necessity to implement continuous effort in risk factors prevention (e.g. hepatitis B infection), and efficient management in high risk population of liver cancer.