Occupational solvent exposure, genetic variation in immune genes, and the risk for non-Hodgkin lymphoma

Solvent exposure has been inconsistently linked to the risk for non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). The aim of this study was to determine whether the association is modified by genetic variation in immune genes. A population-based case–control study involving 601 incident cases of NHL and 717 controls was carried out in 1996–2000 among women from Connecticut. Thirty single nucleotide polymorphisms in 17 immune genes were examined in relation to the associations between exposure to various solvents and the risk for NHL. The study found that polymorphism in interleukin 10 (IL10; rs1800890) modified the association between occupational exposure to organic solvents and the risk for diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (Pfor interaction=0.0058). The results remained statistically significant after adjustment for false discovery rate. Compared with women who were never occupationally exposed to any organic solvents, women who were exposed to organic solvents at least once had a significantly increased risk for diffuse large B-cell lymphoma if they carried the IL10 (rs1800890) TT genotype (odds ratio=3.31, 95% confidence interval: 1.80–6.08), but not if they carried the AT/AA genotype (odds ratio=1.14, 95% confidence interval: 0.72–1.79). No significant interactions were observed for other immune gene single nucleotide polymorphisms and various solvents in relation to NHL overall and its major subtypes. The study provided preliminary evidence supporting a role of immune gene variations in modifying the association between occupational solvent exposure and the risk for NHL.