Germline polymorphism of p53 codon 72 in gynecological cancer.

Objective: To investigate the biological significance of single nucleotide polymorphism at codon 72 of the p53 gene in the development of gynecological cancer.

Methods: p53 codon 72 polymorphism was examined in a total of 354 blood samples from 95 normal, 83 cervical, 108 endometrial and 68 ovarian cancer cases using polymerase chain reaction and restriction fragment length polymorphism techniques.

Results: When p53 codon 72 genotype was classified into two subgroups of Arg/Arg and Arg/Pro + Pro/Pro, the Arg/Arg genotype was associated with an increased risk for the development of endometrial cancer (OR = 1.86, 95% CI = 1.06 to 3.26) compared with the Arg/Pro + Pro/Pro genotype (P = 0.0301). The Arg allele also increased the risk of endometrial cancer (OR = 1.42, 95% CI = 0.93 to 1.52) compared with the Pro allele, but no statistical difference was found (P = 0.1031). There was no significant difference in the genotype or allele prevalence between control subjects and cervical or ovarian cancer patients.

Conclusion: Homozygous Arg at codon 72 of the p53 gene may be a risk factor for developing endometrial cancer in a Japanese population.