After adjustment for age and smoking, the PCNA-6084C variant was significantly associated with an increased risk of bladder cancer [CC + CG versus GG, odds ratio (OR), 1.61; 95% confidence interval (95% CI), 1.00-2.61], as well as the XRCC1-26651G variant (GG+AG versus AA: OR, 1.73; 95% CI, 1.17-2.56).
Our data are consistent with a potential role of the XRCC1Arg399Gln polymorphism in bladder cancer susceptibility and further suggest that there may be DNA lesions important in bladder carcinogenesis, repaired by the base excision repair mechanism, that are not directly associated with tobacco smoking.