Objective: To investigate the relationship between p53 codon 72 polymorphism and susceptibility to esophageal squamous cell carcinoma in China.
Methods: The p53 genotypes were determined by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism among 204 healthy controls and 91 patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC).
Results: There was no significant difference between patients and controls with respect to allele frequency for the p53 Pro allele (0.480 versus 0.588, P=0.11); however, the Pro/Pro genotype of p53 among cases (39.6%) was significantly (P<0.05) more frequent than that among controls (21.1%). Subjects homozygous for the p53 Pro allele had a more than 2-fold increased risk of developing ESCC (OR=2.18; 95%CI=1.10-4.35, adjusted for age, sex, and smoking), whereas the Arg/Pro genotype was not associated with elevated risk of the cancer (adjusted OR=0.84; 95%CI=0.42-1.68). No interaction between smoking and Pro/Pro genotype was observed for risk of ESCC.
Conclusion: The p53 codon 72 polymorphism may play a role in susceptibility to esophageal carcinogenesis.