Association between the PSCA rs2294008 C>T polymorphism and the risk of gastric cancer: A meta-analysis

Meta-Analysis of PSCA and gastric cancer

Abstract

Gastric cancer (GC) is one of the most frequently diagnosed cancers around the world, and is the second leading cause of cancer related deaths. Several epidemiological studies associated the Helicobacter pylori infection with the risk of GC. However, cancer initiation and progression is a complex and multifactorial involving both genetic and environmental factors. Prostate stem cell antigen (PSCA) plays an important role in cell adhesion, proliferation and tumor progression. A strong association between PSCA rs2294008 C > T polymorphism and the risk of gastric cancer was observed in a previous genome wide association study. However, subsequent association studies yielded inconsistent results. The aim of this meta-analysis is to evaluate the association between PSCA rs2294008 C > T polymorphism and susceptibility to gastric cancer. A literature search was conducted on PubMed, Embase and Google Scholar till December 30^th, 2018 as the publication date. For this meta-analysis analysis, a total of 26 eligible case-control (15676 cases and 16087 controls) studies were taken. Meta-analysis showed that the PSCA rs2294008 C>T is associated with increased risk of gastric cancers. Sub-group analysis by ethnicity revealed that the increased risk of gastric cancers was found only in Asians but not in Caucasians. Further, rs2294008 C>T polymorphism revealed significant heterogeneity between studies. There was no evidence of publication bias in this study. In conclusion, this meta-analysis provides strong evidence that rs2294008 C>T polymorphism is associated with increased risk of gastric cancers and may serve as a genetic biomarker of gastric cancers in Asians.