Genetic association between interluekin-4 rs2243250 polymorphism and gastric cancer susceptibility: evidence based on a meta-analysis.

Abstract

PurposeNumerous studies have suggested that the interleukin-4 (IL-4) rs2243250 polymorphism is associated with gastric cancer susceptibility. However, the results were inconsistent. Hence, we carried out a meta-analysis to confirm the conclusion.MethodsWe searched PubMed, Embase, CBM, CNKI, and Wanfang Data to identify relevant studies up to August 20, 2015. Odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were used to estimate the association between IL-4 rs2243250 polymorphism and gastric cancer susceptibility. All the statistical analyses were performed with Stata 12.0 software.ResultsA total of eleven published case–control studies were identified, including 2,247 gastric cancer patients and 3,370 controls. Overall, no significant association between IL-4 rs2243250 polymorphism and gastric cancer susceptibility was observed in this meta-analysis (T vs C: OR =1.05, 95% CI =0.95–1.17; TT vs CC: OR =1.20, 95% CI =0.89–1.63; CT vs CC: OR =1.14, 95% CI =0.87–1.48; TT + CT vs CC: OR =1.13, 95% CI =0.89–1.44; TT vs CT + CC: OR =1.02, 95% CI =0.88–1.20). Similar results were found in subgroup analyses according to ethnicity and Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium in controls.ConclusionThis meta-analysis suggests that IL-4 rs2243250 polymorphism may not be associated with gastric cancer susceptibility. Further studies are needed to validate this conclusion.