Association between the TGFBR2 G-875A polymorphism and cancer risk: evidence from a meta-analysis.

Disrupted transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta) signaling is involved in the development of various types of cancer and the TGF-beta receptor II (TGFBR2) is a key mediator of TGF-beta growth inhibitory signals. It is reported that the G-875A polymorphism in TGFBR2 is implicated in risk of various cancers. However, results for the association between this polymorphism and cancer remain conflicting. To derive a more precise estimation, a meta-analysis of 3,808 cases and 4,489 controls from nine published case-control studies was performed. Our analysis indicated that G-875A is associated with a trend of decreased cancer risk for allele A versus(vs.) allele G [odds ratio (OR)=0.64, 95% confidence intervals (CI): 0.55-0.74], as well as for both dominant model [(A/A+G/A) vs. G/G, OR=0.76, 95% CI: 0.64-0.90] and recessive model [A/A vs. (G/G+G/A), OR=0.74, 95% CI: 0.59-0.93). However, larger scale primary studies are required to further evaluate the interaction of TGFBR2 G-875A polymorphism and cancer risk in specific cancer subtypes.