Association of polymorphisms and haplotypes of the NBN gene with laryngeal cancer and multiple primary tumors of the head and neck

Background We investigated whether genetic polymorphisms of the DNA repair gene NBN are associated with head and neck cancer risk. Methods We analyzed 6 polymorphisms in 175 patients with a single laryngeal tumor, 104 with multiple primary tumors but 1 malignancy (primary/second) localized in the larynx, 60 patients with multiple primary tumors localized in the head or neck, and 275 controls. Results Although frequencies of single nucleotide polymorphism alleles did not show marked differences, we found significant differences in haplotype frequencies between patients and controls. Haplotypes GGTTAA and ACCCGT were associated with an increased risk of laryngeal cancer (p < .0001, p = .002) and haplotypes GGCCAA and GCCCGT with an increased risk of multiple primary tumors (p < .0001, p = .039). Conclusion Specific haplotypes of the NBN gene may be related to increased susceptibility to laryngeal cancer and second primary tumors localized in the head and neck. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Head Neck, 2012