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Clinical response to morphine in cancer patients and genetic variation in candidate genes

The Pharmacogenomics Journal volume 5, pages 324–336 (2005)Cite this article

Abstract

Morphine is the analgesic of choice for moderate to severe cancer pain; however, 10–30% of patients do not tolerate morphine. This study evaluated genetic variation in the μ-opioid receptor, βarrestin2, stat6 and uridine diphosphate-glucuronysltransferase 2B7 (UGT2B7) genes, in patients who responded to morphine vs those who were switched to alternative opioids. We prospectively recruited and genotyped 162 Caucasian patients (117 controls, 39 switchers). Switchers, were more likely to carry the common allele at 1182 G/A, 5864 G/A, 8622T/C and 11143 G/A in the βarrestin2 gene (P=0.021, 0.043, 0.013, 0.043, respectively). Switchers had increased carriage of the T allele (−1714 C/T) and a significant difference in the allelic frequency at 9065 C/T (χ2=3.86, P=0.049) in the stat6 gene. No differences were seen in genotype or allele frequencies of SNPs in the μ-opioid receptor gene or UGT2B7 gene. This study presents novel data suggesting that variation in genes involved in μ-opioid receptor signalling influence clinical response to morphine.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Clinical Genomics, Imperial College, London, UK

    J R Ross, D Rutter, K Welsh, A U Wells & R Du Bois

  2. Department of Palliative Medicine, Horder Ward, Royal Marsden Hospital, London, UK

    J R Ross, D Rutter, K Goller & J Riley

  3. Department of Medical Oncology, St Bartholomews Hospital, London, UK

    S P Joel

Authors
  1. J R Ross
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  2. D Rutter
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  3. K Welsh
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  4. S P Joel
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  5. K Goller
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  6. A U Wells
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  8. J Riley
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Correspondence to J R Ross.

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Appendix A

Appendix A

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Ross, J., Rutter, D., Welsh, K. et al. Clinical response to morphine in cancer patients and genetic variation in candidate genes. Pharmacogenomics J 5, 324–336 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.tpj.6500327

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