Genetic susceptibility to breast cancer: HLA DQB*03032 and HLA DRB1*11 mayrepresent protective alleles

Tumors are believed to emerge only when immune surveillance fails. We wishe d to ascertain whether the failure to inherit putative protective alleles o f HLA class II genes is linked to the development of breast cancer. We mole cularly typed HLA DPB1, DQB1, DRB1, and DRB3 alleles in 176 Caucasian women diagnosed with early-onset breast cancer and in 215 ethnically matched con trols. HLA DQB*03032 was identified in 7% of controls but in no patients wi th early-onset breast cancer (P = 0.0001). HLA DRB1*11 alleles were also si gnificantly overrepresented (P < 0.0001) in controls (16.3%) as compared wi th patients with early-onset breast cancer (3.5%). HLA DQB*03032 and HLA DR B1*11 alleles may have a protective role in human breast cancer.