Abstract 6598: MET gene polymorphisms and breast cancer: A study of Nigerian patients

Abstract Breast cancer (BC) remains a major cause of cancer-related mortality among women worldwide. Genetic polymorphisms, such as those in the Mesenchymal Epithelial Transition (MET) proto-oncogene, may influence susceptibility and tumor progression as seen in gastric, liver, and thyroid cancer in Japanese and Chinese populations. This study evaluated the association between three MET gene single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) namely rs40239, rs1621, and rs41736 and breast cancer risk and tumor grade among Nigerian women. A case-control study was conducted with 150 participants, comprising 75 breast cancer patients and 75 healthy controls. DNA was extracted from blood samples and genotyped using the TaqMan SNP assay. Genotype and allele frequencies for the SNPs were compared between the groups, and associations with BC risk were evaluated using the chi-square test and odds ratios (ORs). In addition, ordinal regression analysis was performed to assess the relationship between SNP (rs1621) and tumor grade. Genotyping revealed distinct distributions of genotype in both groups. For rs40239, the AA genotype was more frequent in controls (60%) than in cases (17%), though the association with BC risk was not statistically significant (OR=4.706, 95% CI: 0.959-23.096, p=0.062). No significant associations were observed for rs1621 (OR=1.188, 95% CI: 0.516-2.733, p=0.426) or rs41736 (OR=0.954, 95% CI: 0.904-1.006, p=0.262). The mutant allele rs1621 was associated with reduced odds of being in a higher tumor grade (OR=0.475), suggesting a potential protective effect against aggressive tumors. However, this association was not statistically significant (p=0.090, 95% CI: -1.606-0.116). While rs1621 showed a non-significant trend towards a protective role against higher tumor grades, no statistically significant associations were observed between the examined SNPs (rs40239, rs1621, and rs41736) and breast cancer risk. Future research should focus on expanding sample sizes, including diverse African populations, and exploring the role of genetic variants in breast cancer predisposition and progression. Citation Format: Emeka Eze Joshua Iweala, Doris N. Amuji. MET gene polymorphisms and breast cancer: A study of Nigerian patients [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2025; Part 1 (Regular Abstracts); 2025 Apr 25-30; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2025;85(8_Suppl_1):Abstract nr 6598.