Background: Several epidemiological studies have illustrated that polymorphisms in interleukin-2 (IL-2) were associated with diverse cancer types. However, recently published statistics were inconsistent and inconclusive. Therefore, the current meta-analysis was performed to elaborate the effects of IL-2 polymorphisms (rs2069762 and rs2069763) on cancer susceptibility.
Material and methods: A total of 5,601 cancer cases and 7,809 controls from 21 published case-control studies were enrolled in our meta-analysis. Odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated to assess the association between IL-2 polymorphisms and cancer susceptibility.
Results: Our study demonstrated an increased susceptibility to cancer in rs2069762 (G vs T: OR =1.268, 95% CI =1.113-1.445; GG vs TT: OR =1.801, 95% CI =1.289-2.516; GT vs TT: OR =1.250, 95% CI =1.061-1.473; GG + GT vs TT: OR =1.329, 95% CI =1.118-1.579; GG vs GT + TT: OR =1.536, 95% CI =1.162-2.030). In the subgroup analysis, increased susceptibility to cancer was identified in the hospital-based group and P HWE<0.05 (P-value of the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium [HWE]) group. In addition, a positive association with cancer susceptibility was observed among both Chinese and non-Chinese. However, no relationship was detected between the rs2069763 polymorphism of IL-2 and cancer susceptibility.
Conclusion: To conclude, rs2069762 polymorphism of IL-2 contributed to an increased susceptibility to cancer, whereas no association was identified between rs2069763 polymorphism and cancer susceptibility. Further detailed studies are warranted to confirm our findings.
Keywords: IL-2; cancer; meta-analysis; polymorphism.