Whilst our UK study does not support the tenet of two independent loci at 5p15.33 for lung cancer which has recently been proposed (5), data from both IARC and Texas provides strong evidence for an independent locus (Supplementary Table 6). Stratification of UK data by histology does, however provide strong evidence that rs2736100 genotype influences the histology of lung cancer induction favouring development of NSCLC-adenocarcinoma (Table 2). It is therefore noteworthy in that the Texas GWA study was based on analysis of only NSCLC cases and despite its relatively small size a strong association between rs2736100 and risk was detected. Both CLPTM1L and TERT which map to 5p represent attractive candidates for lung cancer susceptibility a priori assuming the causal variant exerts an influence through a cis effect. The biology of TERT makes it an attractive candidate for a gene that influences lung cancer risk and moreover association between rs401681 risk allele and shorter telomere length has recently been reported(12). High levels of PAH adducts correlate with lung cancer risk and as a major effect of platinum on cells is
