Association of a common polymorphism in the cyclooxygenase 2 gene with risk of non-small cell lung cancer

Studies have indicated that inflammation, in conjunction with the production of reactive oxygen species, may play a key role in lung cancer development. In this study, 250 lung cancer patients and 214 controls were genotyped for polymorphisms of the inflammation-related genes prostaglandin synthase-2/cyclooxygenase-2 (COX2/PTGS2), interleukin-6 (IL6), interleukin-8 (IL8) and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARg). We found that carriers of the C allele of a polymorphism in the 3'-UTR of COX2 had a significantly increased risk of lung cancer, with odds ratios of 4.28 (95% CI, 2.44-7.49) for homozygotes and 2.12 (95% CI, 1.25-3.59) for heterozygotes. Additionally, we found that an IL8 promoter polymorphism had a protective effect for lung cancer in female subjects, whereas an IL6 promoter polymorphism was only associated with risk of squamous cell carcinoma. This is the first study implicating polymorphisms in inflammatory genes in the risk of lung cancer.