Epidemiological and genetic evidence for the relationship between ABO blood group and human cancer

Huijie Cui; Yang Qu; Li Zhang; Wenqiang Zhang; Peijing Yan; Chao Yang; Min Zhang; Ye Bai; Mingshuang Tang; Yutong Wang; Lin Chen; Chenghan Xiao; Yanqiu Zou; Yunjie Liu; Ling Zhang; Yanfang Yang; Yuqin Yao; Jiayuan Li; Zhenmi Liu; Chunxia Yang; Xia Jiang; Ben Zhang

doi:10.1002/ijc.34533

Epidemiological and genetic evidence for the relationship between ABO blood group and human cancer

Int J Cancer. 2023 Jul 15;153(2):320-330. doi: 10.1002/ijc.34533. Epub 2023 Apr 19.

Authors

Huijie Cui¹, Yang Qu¹, Li Zhang¹, Wenqiang Zhang¹, Peijing Yan¹, Chao Yang¹, Min Zhang², Ye Bai², Mingshuang Tang¹, Yutong Wang¹, Lin Chen¹, Chenghan Xiao³, Yanqiu Zou¹, Yunjie Liu¹, Ling Zhang⁴, Yanfang Yang¹, Yuqin Yao⁵, Jiayuan Li¹, Zhenmi Liu³, Chunxia Yang¹, Xia Jiang^{1

6

7}, Ben Zhang¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Institute of Systems Epidemiology, and West China-PUMC C. C. Chen Institute of Health, West China School of Public Health and West China Fourth Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan, China.
² Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, School of Public Health and Management, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China.
³ Department of Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health, West China School of Public Health and West China Fourth Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
⁴ Department of Iatrical Polymer Material and Artificial Apparatus, School of Polymer Science and Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
⁵ Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, West China School of Public Health and West China Fourth Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
⁶ Department of Nutrition and Food Hygiene, West China School of Public Health and West China Fourth Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
⁷ Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden.

PMID: 37074298
DOI: 10.1002/ijc.34533

Abstract

To comprehensively evaluate the etiological role of ABO blood group in human cancer, we conducted a large-scale meta-analysis of 127 publications totaling 20 million participants including 231 737 patients of 20 cancers, supplemented by genetic evidence. Effects of A, AB and B groups on cancer risk were investigated by respectively comparing with O group and their combined counterparts, and subgroup analysis by ethnicity was conducted for O-referent models. For cancer categories, A group increased risk of cancers of oral cavity and nasopharynx, digestive and female genital organs, while both AB and B groups showed associations with cancers of digestive and female genital organs. For individual cancers, A group significantly increased the risk of nine cancers including oral cavity (OR = 1.17, P = .013), stomach (OR = 1.19, P = 3.90 × 10^-15 ), pancreas (OR = 1.33, P = 9.89 × 10^-33 ), colorectum (OR = 1.09, P = .001), liver (OR = 1.23, P = .011), ovary (OR = 1.13, P = .001), cervix (OR = 1.17, P = .025), bladder (OR = 1.12, P = .025) and breast (OR = 1.06, P = .043). AB group showed associations with only three cancers: stomach (OR = 1.10, P = .007), pancreas (OR = 1.21, P = .001) and ovary (OR = 1.28, P = .006). B group, except for shared associations with A group on pancreas (OR = 1.20, P = 2.27 × 10^-5 ) and cervix cancers (OR = 1.13, P = .011), had two distinct associations with esophagus (OR = 1.17, P = .002) and nonmelanoma skin cancers (OR = 0.96, P = .017). Ethnicity-specific analyses revealed the notable effects of non-O groups on pancreatic cancer both in Caucasians and Asians. In genetic analysis, four SNPs were associated with the risk of pancreatic cancer, with rs505922 corresponding to O group showing the strongest protective effect (P = 1.16 × 10^-23 ). Our study provided comprehensive evidence of ABO blood group associated with cancers and highlighted its carcinogenic role.

Keywords: ABO blood group; association; cancer; comparison; ethnicity.

Publication types

Meta-Analysis
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

ABO Blood-Group System* / genetics
Female
Humans
Pancreatic Neoplasms* / genetics
Risk

Substances

ABO Blood-Group System