BACKGROUNDXRCC1 polymorphism at Arg399Gln site has been shown to modulate DNA repair capacity. The aim of this study is to assess the relationship between XRCC1 polymorphism and susceptibility to lung adenocarcinoma in nonsmoking female via a hospital-based case-control study.

METHODSCases were 126 female patients with lung adenocarcinoma from January 2002 to October 2004 in China Medical University Hospital and Liaoning Tumor Hospital. Controls were selected from patients with other pulmonary diseases in the hospitals at the same time. These controls were matched to cases on age (±5 years). Information concerning demographic and risk factors was obtained for each case and control by a trained interviewer. XRCC1 genotypes were determined by PCR-RFLP. The adjusted odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were calculated using logistic regression.

RESULTSCases showed a higher prevalence of oil smoke compared with controls (P < 0.05). The frequencies of Arg/Arg, Arg/Gln and Gln/Gln in lung adenocarcinoma group (32.54%, 42.86%, 24.60%) were significantly different from those in controls (54.76%, 40.48%, 4.76%) (P < 0.05). The individual carrying Gln/Gln genotype was at a significantly increased risk of lung adenocarcinoma compared with those with Arg/Arg genotype (OR=8.695, 95%CI 3.343-22.614, adjusted for age and oil smoke exposure). Furthermore, the OR of lung adenocarcinoma for the variant XRCC1 399Gln allele combined with exposure to oil smoke was 5.21 (95%CI 1.85-14.70, P < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONSThe results indicate that the Arg399Gln polymorphism in XRCC1 is associated with the risk of lung adenocarcinoma in nonsmoking women.