The RAD51 protein family is essential for DNA repair by homologous recombination, and interacts with the major breast and ovarian cancer susceptibility genes BRCA1 and BRCA2. On 18q21.33 the lead DA SNP was an intronic variant in BCL2 located within an enhancer-like region in mammary fibroblasts. This evidence concerns the gene RAD51 and ovarian carcinoma.