Vascular endothelial growth factor +936C/T polymorphism and cancer risk in Asians: a meta-analysis

Abstract

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), the most important regulator of angiogenesis and vascular permeability, is involved in various steps of carcinogenesis. The +936C/T polymorphism of the VEGF gene has been reported to affect the VEGF protein level and to be related to the susceptibility of cancer. However, the results of published studies, as well as the subsequent meta-analyses, remain contradictory. We investigated the association between VEGF +936C/T polymorphism and cancer risk in the Asian population. Twenty-one papers were selected from the PubMed database after a systematic search. Statistics on the frequencies of CC, CT, and TT genotypes of the VEGF +936C/T gene were collected from 8298 cases and 8053 controls. No significant associations between the VEGF +936C/T polymorphism and cancer risk were found for alleles T vs C [odd ratio (OR) = 0.99, 95% confidence interval (95%CI) = 0.93-1.05], TT vs CT/CC (OR = 1.05, 95%CI = 0.88-1.26), CC vs CT/TT (OR = 1.02, 95%CI = 0.96-1.10), and TT vs CC (OR = 1.05, 95%CI = 0.88-1.25). No significant associations were detected in the subgroup analysis by cancer type either. The VEGF +936C/T polymorphism is not associated with risk of overall cancer among Asians.