Increased risk of developing lung cancer in Asian patients carrying the TERT rs2736098 G>A polymorphism: evidence from 3,354 cases and 3,518 controls

摘要

Background: The association between telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) rs2736098 G>A and risk of lung cancer (LC) remains inconclusive. To explore the association more precisely, we performed a comprehensive search and conducted a meta-analysis on all eligible case–control studies involving 3,354 cases and 3,518 controls.Methods: The 95% confidence interval (95% CI) and the pooled odds ratio (OR) were calculated using a random or fixed effect model. Publication bias, heterogeneity, and sensitivity analysis were also explored.Results: All studies were case–control studies on LC in patients of Asian descent, consisting of one Korean study and five Chinese studies. Overall, the variant A allele of TERT rs2736098 G>A was found to significantly increase the risk of LC in all genetic models (GA vs GG: OR?=1.13, 95% CI =1.02–1.25, P=0.017; AA vs GG: OR =1.78, 95% CI =1.53–2.07, PA polymorphism significantly increased the risk of LC in Asian populations.