Effects of caspase-9 and survivin gene polymorphisms in pancreatic cancer risk and tumor characteristics.

OBJECTIVES: This case-control study was performed to evaluate the association between a specific caspase-9 polymorphism as well as the genetic polymorphism -31G/C located in the cycle-dependent elements/cell cycle homology regions repressor element of the human survivin promoter and the risk of pancreatic cancer. METHODS: Eighty patients with pancreatic cancer and 160 healthy controls were investigated for genotype and allelic frequencies of caspase-9 1263A/G and survivin -31G/C polymorphisms by Polymerase Chain Reaction-Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism. RESULTS: The G carrier group of patients and the G allele of caspase-9 1263A/G were overrepresented among the pancreatic cancer cases. With regard to tumor characteristics, a statistically significant association was detected between the survivin C carrier group of patients and the advanced T stage as well as the presence of lymph node metastasis. CONCLUSIONS: The caspase-9 G allele confers increased susceptibility to pancreatic cancer development, and the survivin C carriage status may be related to aggressive features of this malignancy.