Harnessing the gut microbiota in extra-intestinal cancers: from causal evidence to immunotherapy strategies - PubMed
3 hours ago
- #immunotherapy
- #cancer
- #gut-microbiota
- The gut microbiota (GM) influences cancer development and therapeutic response beyond the gastrointestinal tract.
- Specific microbial taxa and their metabolites are linked to either increased or decreased cancer risk in extra-intestinal cancers.
- GM composition affects the efficacy and toxicity of anticancer therapies, particularly immunotherapy.
- SCFA-producing bacteria, Akkermansia muciniphila, and members of Lachnospiraceae and Ruminococcaceae families enhance responses to immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs).
- Dysbiosis and immunosuppressive bacteria are associated with poor outcomes and immune-related adverse events.
- Therapeutic modulation of GM through probiotics, prebiotics, fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT), and dietary interventions shows promise in optimizing immunotherapy efficacy.
- Standardized clinical protocols for GM modulation are currently lacking.
- Integrating GM profiling with multi-omics and AI approaches could lead to personalized microbiota-targeted interventions.
- The review summarizes current evidence, discusses mechanistic insights, and outlines future perspectives for translating microbiota modulation into clinical practice.