Numerous epidemiological studies have evaluated the association between polymorphism in the gene encoding x-ray repair cross complementing 1 (XRCC1) protein and the risk of female reproductive system cancer, but results are inconclusive. To gain a comprehensive picture of available evidence, we searched for relevant studies in the PubMed, EMBASE, Scopus, and Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure databases up to December 17, 2016. A total of 26 case-control studies were picked out. The pooled odds ratio (OR) with its 95% confidence interval (CI) was calculated to estimate the association. Based on data of all study participants, we did not find a positive association of rs25487 or rs1799782 polymorphism with risk of female reproductive cancer risk. Subgroup analysis, however, identified two alleles as being associated with an increased risk of female reproductive system cancer in Asians: the A allele of rs25487 (heterozygous genetic model, OR 1.16, 95%CI 1.00-1.36), and the T allele of rs1799782 (homozygous model, OR 2.30, 95%CI 1.39-3.82; dominant model, OR 1.28, 95%CI 1.10-1.50; recessive model, OR 2.11, 95%CI 1.33-3.34). Moreover, the AA genotype at rs25489 was determined to be a risk factor for cervical cancer etiology (homozygous model, OR 2.91, 95%CI, 1.17-7.26; recessive model, OR 3.16, 95%CI 1.91-5.24). This meta-analysis suggests that no association between rs25487 or rs1799782 gene polymorphism and risk of female reproductive cancer risk was found. These results should be validated in larger studies.
Keywords: XRCC1; female reproductive system cancer; gene polymorphism; meta-analysis.