Polymorphisms in the FGF2 Gene and Risk of Serous Ovarian Cancer: Results From the Ovarian Cancer Association Consortium

Fibroblast growth factor (FGF)-2 (basic) is a potent angiogenic molecule involved in tumor progression, and is one of several growth factors with a central role in ovarian carcinogenesis. We hypothesized that common single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the FGF2 gene may alter angiogenic potential and thereby susceptibility to ovarian cancer. We analyzed 25 FGF2 tgSNPs using five independent study populations from the United States and Australia. Analysis was restricted to non-Hispanic White women with serous ovarian carcinoma (1269 cases and 2829 controls). There were no statistically significant associations between any FGF2 SNPs and ovarian cancer risk. There were two nominally statistically significant associations between heterozygosity for two FGF2 SNPs (rs308379 and rs308447; p < .05) and serous ovarian cancer risk in the combined dataset, but rare homozygous estimates did not achieve statistical significance, nor were they consistent with the log additive model of inheritance. Overall genetic variation in FGF2 does not appear to play a role in susceptibility to ovarian cancer.