ABSTRACT

Objective: To perform genotyping for MTR A2756G polymorphism and identification of risk factors associated with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC).
Study Design: Cross section, comparative study.
Place and Duration of Study: The study was carried out at the Department of Biochemistry of Quaid-i- Azam University, Islamabad from October 2014 to August 2015.
Materials and Methods: In this study, 292 diagnosed patients HNSCC and 324 normal individuals without any history of cancer were enrolled. Blood samples of patients and controls were collected in ethylenediamine tetra acetic acid (EDTA) and DNA was extracted using conventional method. All samples were genotyped for the MTR A2756G polymorphism using PCR-RFLP. Frequency of polymorphism was compared between HNSCC patients and controls. Multiple Logistic Regression (MLR) andchi square test was performed to examine the association of MTR A2756G polymorphism with risk factor.
Results: Chi-square test of independence showed statistically significant difference among the variables of age, smoking and MTR A2756G genotype (p-value<0.05). Multivariate analysis showed that smoking (adjusted OR, 3.7; 95% CI, 2.3 – 6.0), age groups 41 – 50 years (adjusted OR, 3.6; 95% CI, .9 – 6.7) and > 60 years (adjusted OR, 3.5; 95% CI, 1.7 – 7.3), MTR 2756 AG genotype (adjusted OR, 2.1; 95% CI, 1.3 – 3.5) is associated with increased risk of HNSCC.
Conclusion: The results suggest that the genetic polymorphism MTR A2756G is associated with the occurrence of HNSCC in the Pakistani population while the individuals between 40 to 50 years of age and those who are smokers are at a greater risk of developing HNSCC.