MMP-1 promoter polymorphism is associated with risk of radiation-induced lung injury in lung cancer patients treated with radiotherapy

Matrix metalloproteinase-1 (MMP-1) has been implicated in several inflammatory and fibrotic diseases. We hypothesized that genetic variations in the MMP1 promoter region are associated with risk of radiation-induced lung injury (RILI). A cohort of 251 lung cancer patients was genotyped for five single nucleotide polymorphisms in the MMP1 promoter region. We found that rs1144393 AG/GG was strongly correlated with an increased occurrence of grade ≥ 2 RILI (p = 0.002). Additionally, patients with the rs1144393 AG/GG genotypes exhibited higher MMP-1 expression than patients with the AA genotype in lung tissues (n = 28, p = 0.022) and plasma samples (n = 40, p = 0.018). Our results indicated that rs1144393 in the MMP1 promoter region can be a predictor of grade ≥ 2 RILI in lung cancer patients treated with thoracic radiation.