The genetic basis of susceptibility to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is poorly understood. To summarize the quantitative association between polymorphisms of the tumour necrosis factor-α (TNFA) gene and HCC, a meta-analysis of relevant studies was performed. Ten case–control studies involving 1421 HCC cases were identified from the Medline®, Embase® and Current Contents® databases. Combined results based on all studies showed that patients with HCC had a significantly lower frequency of the TNFA gene polymorphism −308GG than healthy controls. When stratifying for race, results were similar among Asians and Caucasians. When comparing with hepatitis B virus infection cases, no statistical association was found. This meta-analysis suggests that TNFA −308GG gene polymorphism is associated with a modest decrease in the risk of HCC.
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