BACKGROUND: The association between the HLA-B-associated transcript 3 polymorphisms and lung cancer risk is a subject of debate. We conducted a meta-analysis to evaluate the association between these polymorphisms and lung cancer susceptibility.

MATERIAL AND METHODS: A systematic search of electronic databases (PubMed, EMBASE, Wanfang, and China National Knowledge Infrastructure) was performed. Data were extracted and pooled odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated.

RESULTS: Ten case-control studies with 37 945 and 56 807 controls were included in this meta-analysis. Overall, a significant association between rs1052486 polymorphism and lung cancer susceptibility was observed (OR=1.07, 95% CI 1.01–1.12, P=0.01). In addition, a significant association was found for rs3117582 polymorphism (OR=1.29, 95% CI 1.22–1.37, P<0.01).

CONCLUSIONS: This meta-analysis suggested that HLA-B-associated transcript 3 polymorphisms are risk factors for lung cancer.

Keywords: Genetic Predisposition to Disease, Lung Neoplasms - genetics, Molecular Chaperones - genetics, Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide - genetics, Risk Factors