Association between ERCC2 Lys751Gln polymorphism and lung cancer risk: a meta-analysis involving 23,370 subjects

Recent studies report a correlation between excision repair cross-complementing group 2 (ERCC2) Lys751Gln polymorphism and an increased risk of lung cancer, but results are controversial and inconclusive. Thus, we conducted a comprehensive meta-analysis in order to assess the correlation between them. Our study uses an odds ratio (OR) with a 95% confidence interval (95% CI) to evaluate the strength of the association; we also performed Begg's funnel plot and the Egger's test to assess the publication bias of previous articles. Finally, our meta-analysis is comprised of 28 full studies, including 23,370 subjects (10,242 cases and 13,128 controls). Our overall research shows that ERCC2 Lys751Gln polymorphism carries an increased risk of developing lung cancer (C vs. A: OR = 1.160, 95% CI = 1.081-1.245, p = .000; CC vs. AA: OR = 1.252, 95% CI = 1.130-1.388, p = .000; CA vs. AA: OR = 1.152, 95% CI = 1.060-1.252, p = .001; CC+CA vs. AA: OR = 1.186, 95% CI = 1.089-1.292, p = .000; CC vs. CA+AA: OR = 1.196, 95% CI = 1.087-1.316, p = .000). In ethnic subgroup analyses, we find a significant risk among Caucasians (C vs. A: OR = 1.106, 95% CI = 1.048-1.166, p = .000; CC vs. AA: OR = 1.233, 95% CI = 1.103-1.378, p = .000; CC+CA vs. AA: OR = 1.113, 95% CI = 1.033-1.199, p = .005; CC vs. CA+AA: OR = 1.185, 95% CI = 1.069-1.313, p = .001) and among Asians under two genetic models (CA vs. AA: OR = 1.265, 95% CI = 1.034-1.549, p = .023; CC+CA vs. AA: OR = 1.252, 95% CI = 1.015-1.544, p = .036). These results were confirmed by similar findings, demonstrated by stratified analyses in study design and histological typing. This meta-analysis indicates that ERCC2 Lys751Gln polymorphism may lead to an increased susceptibility to lung cancer risk among Caucasians and Asians.