Objective: To investigate the association of Arg261Gln polymorphism in the coding region of 12-lipoxygenase (LOX12) gene with the risk of developing stomach cancer. Methods: The LOX12 genotypes in 148 patients with gastric cancer and 148 cancer-free controls were determined by using PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP). The association between the genotypes and risk of developing gastric cancer was estimated by logistic regression model. Results: The allele frequency for LOX12 Arg261Gln in gastric cancer patients (0.544) was higher than that of the normal controls (0.443). Compared with the Arg/Arg genotype carriers, the risk of developing gastric cancer was increased in Gln/Gln genotype carriers (OR=2.26, 95%CI=1.15–4.46, P=0.018), while those with the heterozygous genotype Arg/Gln showed no increased risk of developing gastric cancer (OR=1.37, 95%CI=0.77–2.44, P=0.284). Conclusion: The inherited polymorphisms of Arg261Gln in LOX12 gene encoding region may confer genetic susceptibility to development of stomach cancer.