Polymorphisms in DNA repair pathway genes and ABCG2 gene in advanced colorectal cancer: correlation with tumor characteristics and clinical outcome in oxaliplatin-based chemotherapy

OBJECTIVE: Multiple factors are involved in oxaliplatin-resistant process in colorectal cancer (CRC) patients including decreased drug accumulation and enhanced capacity to repair and tolerate DNA damage. In the present study, we aimed to assess the impact of six single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in DNA repair genes and ABCG2 gene on prognosis in advanced CRC patients treated with oxaliplatin-based chemotherapy. METHODS: In this study, 580 advanced CRC patients were recruited. Six SNPs of DNA repair genes (XPA rs10817938, XPA rs2808668, XPC rs2607775, and WRN rs1346044) and ABCG2 gene (rs2231142 and rs2622621) were genotyped by using the TaqMan assay. RESULTS: Regarding interaction with environmental factors, ABCG2 rs2231142 and the first-degree family history of cancer and XPC rs2607775 or ABCG2 rs2622621 and lymph node metastases status demonstrated significant interactions. Of these six SNPs, XPA rs10817938 CT/ TT genotypes retained its significant association with longer overall survival (OS) (P=0.008) in CRC patients receiving oxaliplatin-based chemotherapy (n=580). Furthermore, a significantly better impact on the disease-free survival (DFS) (P=0.001) and OS (P<0.0001) was found in ABCG2 rs2231142CA/AA carriers. Furthermore, ABCG2 rs2622621 CG/GG genotype was verified to be an independent poor prognostic factor in DFS (P=0.010) and OS (P=0.030). In the stratification analysis, XPA rs10817938 CT/CC, rs2231142 CA/AA, and rs2622621 CC genotypes of ABCG2 were predictive of significantly better prognosis in the patients with tumor differentiation grade 3 (n=523), clinical stage IV (n=73), or lymph node-positive status (n=557). Additionally, multivariate logistic regression and multiple dimension reduction analysis consistently revealed that the combination of selected SNPs and five known risk factors showed a better prediction prognosis and represented the best model to predict CRC prognosis. CONCLUSION: The current data indicated that the XPA gene and ABCG2 gene had significant interaction with environmental factors and prognosis, which could provide a comprehensive understanding of the implications of those SNPs in the prediction of prognosis in advanced CRC patients receiving oxaliplatin-based chemotherapy.