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Purpose Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most common and aggressive type of glioma and has the poorest survival. However, a small percentage of patients with GBM survive well beyond the established median. Therefore, identifying the genetic variants that influence this small number of unusually long-term survivors may provide important insight into tumor biology and treatment. Patients and Methods Among 590 patients with primary GBM, we evaluated associations of survival with the 100 top-ranking glioma susceptibility single nucleotide polymorphisms from our previous genome-wide association study using Cox regression models. We also compared differences in genetic variation between short-term survivors (STS; ≤ 12 months) and long-term survivors (LTS; ≥ 36 months), and explored classification and regression tree analysis for survival data. We tested results using two independent series totaling 543 GBMs. Results We identified LIG4 rs7325927 and BTBD2 rs11670188 as predictors of STS in GBM and CCDC26 rs10464870 and rs891835, HMGA2 rs1563834, and RTEL1 rs2297440 as predictors of LTS. Further survival tree analysis revealed that patients ≥ 50 years old with LIG4 rs7325927 (V) had the worst survival (median survival time, 1.2 years) and exhibited the highest risk of death (hazard ratio, 17.53; 95% CI, 4.27 to 71.97) compared with younger patients with combined RTEL1 rs2297440 (V) and HMGA2 rs1563834 (V) genotypes (median survival time, 7.8 years). Conclusion Polymorphisms in the LIG4, BTBD2, HMGA2, and RTEL1 genes, which are involved in the double-strand break repair pathway, are associated with GBM survival.

PurposeUnderstanding how specific genetic variants modify drug action pathways may provide informative blueprints for individualized chemotherapy.MethodsWe applied a pathway-based approach to examine the impact of a comprehensive panel of genetic polymorphisms on clinical outcomes in 210 esophageal cancer patients.ResultsIn the Cox proportional hazards model, MTHFR Glu429Ala variant genotypes were associated with significantly improved survival (hazard ratio [HR] = 0.56; 95% CI, 0.35 to 0.89) in patients treated with fluorouracil (FU). The 3-year survival rates for patients with the variant genotypes and the wild genotypes were 65.26% and 46.43%, respectively. Joint analysis of five polymorphisms in three FU pathway genes showed a significant trend for reduced recurrence risk and longer recurrence-free survival as the number of adverse alleles decreased (P = .004). For patients receiving platinum drugs, the MDR1 C3435T variant allele was associated with significantly reduced recurrence risk (HR = 0.25; 95% CI, 0.10 to 0.64) and improved survival (HR = 0.44; 95% CI, 0.23 to 0.85). In nucleotide excision repair genes, there was a significant trend for a decreasing risk of death with a decreasing number of high-risk alleles (P for trend = .0008). In base excision repair genes, the variant alleles of XRCC1 Arg399Gln were significantly associated with the absence of pathologic complete response (odds ratio = 2.75; 95% CI, 1.14 to 6.12) and poor survival (HR = 1.92; 95% CI, 1.00 to 3.72).ConclusionSeveral biologically plausible associations between individual single nucleotide polymorphisms and clinical outcomes were found. Our data also strongly suggest that combined pathway-based analysis may provide valuable prognostic markers of clinical outcomes.

5527 Background: Human papillomavirus (HPV), especially serotype 16, is implicated in causing a subset of head and neck cancers. Preventing this HPV-related disease and the epidemiology of transmis...

6080 Background: Human papillomavirus (HPV) is an important etiologic factor in HNSCC and its prevalence has been reported in several independent studies. We conducted a meta-analysis to determine the prevalence of HPV, its impact on risk of developing HNSCC and overall survival (OS). Methods: Pubmed search terms “HPV” and “HNSCC” were used to identify 40 clinical and translational studies between the years 1980–2008 that reported the prevalence of HPV in HNSCC. Statistical software STATA 10.0 was used in the meta-analyses to identify the association of HPV and HNSCC risk and OS. Pooled adjusted odds ratio (OR) or hazard ratio (HR) were obtained using a random-effects model. The amount of heterogeneity between studies was estimated with both the Chi-squared based Q test and the I2 statistic model. Potential sources of publication bias were detected using funnel plots. OS between the trials was compared in forest plot. Results: A total of 6,794 patients (pts) were included. The prevalence of HPV among HNSCC pts was 24.2%; and 86.8% of all HPV(+) tumors were HPV16. Thirteen studies (n = 1933 pts) determined HPV status by serology and the remainder detected HPV DNA in tumor tissue by PCR. Overall, HPV positivity conferred an increased risk for HNSCC (OR = 1.43; 95% CI 1.04–1.82). Risk for HNSCC among HPV16(+) pts was 4.47 times that of HPV16(-) pts. The OS was improved in HPV(+) pts compared to HPV(-) pts (HR = 0.40; 0.27–0.53). In HPV16(+) pts the HR for OS was 0.41 and the survival benefit was even more pronounced in the subgroup of HPV16(+) oropharyngeal cancers (HR = 0.38;0.17–0.58). Conclusions: This meta-analysis provides further evidence supporting the role of HPV as an important causative agent in HNSCC and supports HPV(+) HNSCC as a separate biologic entity which likely should be treated differently than HPV(-) HNSCC. Additional analysis on treatment outcomes to systemic and local therapy is ongoing. No significant financial relationships to disclose.