Association Of The P21 And P27 Gene Polymorphisms With Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Objective: Esophageal cancer is a prevalent tumor in north China. The disease is characterized by a particularly poor prognosis because most patients are currently diagnosed at advanced stages of the disease. Detection of esophageal cancer at earlier stages probably gives the best chance to improve prognosis. Determination of individuals with high risk toward esophageal cancer provides a promising approach to achieve this goal. The development of esophageal cancer was found to be associated with the environment, the consumed foods, physical damage caused by ingesting hard foods or hot liquids, deficiency of nutrients, and the consumption of alcohol and tobacco. However, only a subset of individuals exposed to the above listed exogenous risk factors will develop esophageal cancer. It suggests a role of endogenous host susceptibility factors in the cancer development.The P21 and p27 gene that were found in recent years are important members in the family of CDKI. They are negative regulators of cell cycle progression and potentially act as tumor suppressors. The single nucleotide polymorphism of P21 and p27 gene may modulate their transcription and expression of...