P53 gene codon 72 polymorphism and susceptibility to esophageal squamous cell carcinoma in a Chinese population

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.