VEGF 936C>T polymorphism and breast cancer risk: evidence from 5,729 cases and 5,868 controls

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is one of the most potent endothelial cell mitogens and plays an important role in angiogenesis. Many published studies have evaluated the association between the VEGF 936C>T polymorphism and breast cancer risk. However, the published findings are inconsistent. In order to derive a more precise estimation of the association, a meta-analysis was performed in this study. A total of eight studies including 5,729 breast cancer cases and 5,868 controls were identified. Overall, no significant associations between the VEGF 936C>T polymorphism and breast cancer risk were found for TT versus CC (OR 0.93, 95% CI 0.73-1.19), CT versus CC (OR 0.91, 95% CI 0.77-1.09), TT/CT versus CC (OR 0.92, 95% CI 0.78-1.08), and TT versus CT/CC (OR 0.96, 95% CI 0.75-1.21). In the subgroup analysis by ethnicity, source of controls, and menopausal status, there was still no significant association detected in any of the genetic models. In summary, our results suggest that the VEGF 936C>T polymorphism may not contribute to breast cancer susceptibility.