C936T polymorphism of the VEGF gene in relation to the risk and the clinical and biological characteristics of sporadic colorectal adenocarcinoma

BACKGROUND: One of the main glycoproteins responsible for angiogenesis is the vascular endothelial growth factor. It is believed that C936T polymorphism, located in the VEGF gene, is correlated with susceptibility towards development of sporadic colorectal adenocarcinoma. The aim of this study was to identify the frequencies of the genotypes of C936T polymorphism of the VEGF gene in patients with sporadic colorectal adenocarcinoma, in comparison with controls, and whether this correlates with the degree of tumor invasion, lymph node involvement and occurrence of metastases at the time of the diagnosis. The analysis was done on 261 patients with sporadic colorectal adenocarcinoma and 261 controls. The genotypes of C936T polymorphism were evaluated by means of the polymerase chain reaction and enzyme digestion, using peripheral blood samples. RESULTS: The occurrences of genotype 936CC were similar in the two groups (80.5% versus 78.5%, p = 0.2288). In relation to tumor location, lymph node involvement, infiltration and tumor metastasis, no statistically significant results were obtained (p = 0.3116, p = 0.8485, p = 0.9408 and p = 0.2861, respectively). CONCLUSION: C936T polymorphism of the VEGF gene did not influence the occurrence of sporadic colorectal adenocarcinoma development and did not correlated with the degree of tumor invasion, lymph node involvement and occurrence of metastases.