Three vascular endothelial growth factor polymorphisms (-460C>T, -2578C>A, 1612G>A) with cancer risk: a meta-analysis based on 30 case-control studies.

We evaluated cancer risk with three VEGF polymorphisms (-460C>T, -2578C>A, 1612G>A) based on current available studies. -460C>T did not appear to influence cancer risks. -2578C carriers had a 30% reduction of colorectal cancer (CRC) risk in comparison with AA homozygote (OR: 0.70, CI: 0.56-0.88). 1612G carriers had a striking 84% reduction of gastric cancer risk in comparison with AA homozygote. Multiple pair-wise comparisons suggested a recessive role for both -2578A and 1612A risk allele. Further studies with larger samples, well-matched controls and homogenous ethnic background are warranted to confirm these findings. We recommend more efforts into the investigation of 1612G>A with cancer risks.