The appearance of 8-oxo-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-oxodG) was examined immunohistochemically using an 8-oxodG-monoclonal antibody in 28 cases of arsenic-related human skin tumors and in 20 cases of arsenic-unrelated human skin cancer to determine if the induction of oxidative stress participates in skin tumorigenesis caused by arsenics. The rate of 8-oxodG-positive was significantly higher in arsenic-related human skin cancer (28 of 28, 100%) than in arsenic-unrelated human skin cancer (3 of 20, 15%, P<0.01 by Chi2 test). Moreover, in all the arsenic-related skin samples, 8-oxodG was detected not only in tumor tissues but also in keratosis and normal tissues. These results suggest that the induction of oxidative stress may play an important role in arsenic carcinogenesis.