The TP53 codon 72 polymorphism has been associated with the individual susceptibility to lung cancer. However, the association remains uncertain and varies with ethnicity, smoking status, cancer histology, and stage.

We performed a meta-analysis to evaluate the relationship between TP53 Arg72Pro polymorphism and lung cancer susceptibility basing on 15,647 lung cancer patients and 14,391 controls from 36 published literatures. We also performed stratified analysis in populations of different ethnicities, smoking statuses, lung cancer stages, and histological types.

The analysis showed a significantly increased lung cancer susceptibility among Pro allele carriers (P < 0.001, odds ratio (OR) = 1.14, 95 % confidence interval (CI) = 1.1–1.19), especially for smokers (P < 0.001, OR = 1.29, 95 % CI = 1.12–1.47). Stratified analysis indicated that Pro72 elevates lung cancer susceptibility in Asians, while it has no effect on lung cancer risk of Caucasians. Moreover, Pro carriers present an increased risk of developing squamous cell carcinoma and adenocarcinoma, instead of large cell carcinoma and small cell carcinoma. Interestingly, patients with the Pro allele seemed to be diagnosed with lung cancer at the early stages (stage I–II, P = 0.008, OR = 1.2, 95 % CI = 1.05–1.37).

Our results suggest that the Pro allele acts as a risk factor for development of lung cancer, especially for smokers and Asians.