Gut microbes in gastrointestinal cancers

Semin Cancer Biol. 2022 Nov;86(Pt 2):967-975. doi: 10.1016/j.semcancer.2021.03.037. Epub 2021 Apr 1.

Abstract

Gut microbes (GMs), dominated by bacteria, play important roles in many physiological processes. The structures and functions of GMs are closely related to human health, the occurrence and development of diseases and the rapid recovery of the body. Gastrointestinal cancers are the major diseases affecting human health worldwide. With the development of metagenomic technology and the wide application of new generation sequencing technology, a large number of studies suggest that complex GMs are related to the occurrence and development of gastrointestinal cancers. Fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) and probiotics can treat and prevent the occurrence of gastrointestinal cancers. This article reviews the latest research progress of microbes in gastrointestinal cancers from the perspectives of the correlation, the influence mechanism and the application, so as to provide new directions for the prevention, early diagnosis and treatment of gastrointestinal cancers.

Keywords: Fecal microbiota transplantation; Gastrointestinal cancers; Gut microbes.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Fecal Microbiota Transplantation
  • Gastrointestinal Microbiome*
  • Gastrointestinal Neoplasms* / etiology
  • Gastrointestinal Neoplasms* / therapy
  • Humans
  • Metagenomics
  • Probiotics* / therapeutic use