Association of -607 C/A polymorphism of IL-18 gene (rs1946518) with breast cancer risk in Zahedan, Southeast Iran.

It is known that interleukin-18 (IL-18) is a proinflammatory cytokine with dual effects on tumor development and progression. It can increase the immune defense against tumor cells. Polymorphisms in the IL-18 genes are known to influence both expression levels and may be associated with outcome of cancers. This study was aimed to find out the possible association of IL-18 polymorphism at position -607 C/A (rs1946518) with breast cancer in a sample of Iranian population. We investigated IL-18 rs1946518 polymorphism on 72 breast cancer patients and 93 cancer free women. Genotyping was done using amplification refractory mutation system-PCR (ARMS-PCR). We found no significant differences between breast cancer patients and control subjects regarding IL-18 rs1946518 polymorphism (χ2=1.78, p=0.411). In conclusion, our finding showed that IL-18 rs1946518 polymorphism was not associated with breast cancer in a sample of Iranian population.