Germline polymorphisms and the risk of therapy-related myeloid neoplasms

Therapy-related myeloid neoplasms (t-MNs) are one of the lethal complications from cytotoxic chemotherapy/radiation therapy. There is substantial variability in the risk of developing t-MNs among individuals who receive the same level of exposures and it has been widely suspected that germline polymorphisms may influence the risk and account for the variability. As the number of cancer survivors increases, effectively identifying an individual with a high risk of developing t-MNs is crucial. Here, we review the previous studies that investigated the association between germline polymorphisms and the risk of t-MNs. Through this process, we also discuss inconsistencies among the results that stem from the difficulties in conducting an appropriate study to link germline polymorphisms with a disease like t-MN that is rare and has a strong association with external exposures.