Cui Yating, Xu Jianguo, Zheng Qingyong, Wang Junfei, Xu Caihua, Zhang Mingyue, Li Jiang, Tian Jinhui
Evidence-Based Medicine Center, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu, China.
Key Laboratory of Evidence-Based Medicine and Knowledge Translation of Gansu Province, Lanzhou, China.
Arch Public Health. 2025 Aug 11;83(1):209. doi: 10.1186/s13690-025-01685-2.
Cancer is a critical global health issue, and gut microbiota is considered a potential factor in the development of cancers. This review synthesizes evidence from Mendelian Randomization (MR) studies to explore the potential causal links between gut microbiota and cancer risk, thereby addressing the limitations inherent in observational studies.
We adopted a systematic literature review approach to search the PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science databases up to December 2023 for all MR studies examining the relationship between gut microbial diversity, strain-specific abundance, and cancer risk. Data extraction encompassed study design, study population, definition of microbial exposure, details of genetic instrument variables, sample size, effect estimates, and statistical significance. Given the diversity of genetic tools across different studies, the results of each study were presented in the form of a forest plot, and quality was assessed according to STROBE-MR criteria.
We reviewed 12 MR studies involving the relationships between 91 gut microbiota species and 14 types of cancer. The studies found that 64 of these gut microbiota species have potential protective effects against cancers, while 52 show tendencies to promote cancer development. Additionally, the relationship between 17 gut microbiota species and cancer remains unclear. Notably, the same gut microbiota species may have distinctly different impacts on different types of cancer.
Diverse gut microbiota have varied impacts on different cancer types. This microbial influence on cancer is not static; it changes dynamically. These changes are linked to variations in inflammation, metabolite adjustments, and differences in gut barrier function.
癌症是一个关键的全球健康问题，肠道微生物群被认为是癌症发生发展的一个潜在因素。本综述综合孟德尔随机化（MR）研究的证据，以探索肠道微生物群与癌症风险之间的潜在因果联系，从而解决观察性研究固有的局限性。
我们采用系统的文献综述方法，在截至2023年12月的PubMed、Embase和Web of Science数据库中搜索所有研究肠道微生物多样性、菌株特异性丰度与癌症风险之间关系的MR研究。数据提取包括研究设计、研究人群、微生物暴露的定义、基因工具变量的细节、样本量、效应估计和统计学意义。鉴于不同研究中基因工具的多样性，每项研究的结果以森林图的形式呈现，并根据STROBE-MR标准评估质量。
我们回顾了12项MR研究，这些研究涉及91种肠道微生物群物种与14种癌症类型之间的关系。研究发现，这些肠道微生物群物种中有64种对癌症具有潜在的保护作用，而52种显示出促进癌症发展的倾向。此外，17种肠道微生物群物种与癌症之间的关系仍不明确。值得注意的是，同一肠道微生物群物种可能对不同类型的癌症有明显不同的影响。
不同的肠道微生物群对不同类型的癌症有不同的影响。这种微生物对癌症的影响不是静态的；它会动态变化。这些变化与炎症、代谢物调节的变化以及肠道屏障功能的差异有关。
