Association of the Glutathione S-transferase T1 Null Genotype with Risk of Gastric Cancer: a Meta-analysis in Asian Populations.

BACKGROUND A large number of studies have been published to investigate the association between the null genotype of glutathione S-transferase T1 (GSTT1) with gastric cancer. However, the results were inconsistent and conflicting. The aim of this study was to estimate the relationship between this polymorphism in the GSTT1 gene and gastric cancer risk in Asian populations by meta-analysis. MATERIALS AND METHODS A literature search was performed in PubMed, Embase, Chinese Biomedical database (CBM), Weipu database, Wanfang database, and China National Knowledge Infrastructure database (CNKI). Statistical analysis was conducted by using Review Manager 5.3. RESULTS Thirty-nine studies with a total of 7,737 gastric cancer cases and 10,823 controls were included in this meta-analysis. The meta-analysis of total studies showed that the null genotype in GSTT1 was associated with increased risk of gastric cancer in Asians (OR=1.19, 95% CI=1.08-1.31, p=0.0002). Subgroup analysis showed a significant relationship between GSTT1 null genotype and gastric cancer in East-Asians, as well as in subgroup analysis of hospital-based design. On subgroup analysis by smoking status, alcohol status, Helicobacter pylori infection status, and histology type, no significant association of this polymorphism with susceptibility to gastric cancer was found. CONCLUSIONS In conclusion, the results showed that the null genotype of GSTT1 is significantly associated with an increased risk in gastric cancer in Asian populations.