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REVIEW article
Front. Immunol.
Sec. Parasite Immunology
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2025.1484686
Helminth-Induced Immune Modulation in Colorectal Cancer: Exploring Therapeutic Applications
Provisionally accepted
Hongyu Li 1,2*
Chaojun Shan 1
Yunhuan Zhu 1 Xiaodong Yao 3
Lijun Lin 4
Yuncheng Qian 1
Yuqing Wang 1
Jialu Xu 1
Yijie Zhang 1 Hairun Li 1 Ling Zhao 1
Keda Chen 1*- 1 Zhejiang Shuren University, Hangzhou, China
- 2 Ocean College, Beibu Gulf University, Qinzhou, Guangx, China
- 3 School of Marxism, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, Jiangsu Province, China
- 4 School of Basic Medical Sciences and Forensic Medicine, Hangzhou Medical College, Hangzhou, Jiangsu Province, China
Colorectal cancer is one of the most lethal tumors, posing a financial and healthcare burden. This study investigates how helminths and pre-existing diseases such as colitis, obesity, diabetes, and gut microbiota issues influence colon cancer development and prognosis. The immune system's protective immunosuppressive response to helminth invasion minimizes inflammation-induced cell damage and DNA mutations, lowering the risk of colorectal cancer precursor lesions. Helminth infection-mediated immunosuppression can hasten colorectal cancer growth and metastasis, which is detrimental to patient outcomes. Some helminth derivatives can activate immune cells to attack cancer cells, making them potentially useful as colorectal cancer vaccines or therapies. This review also covers gene editing approaches. We discovered that using CRISPR/Cas9 to inhibit live helminths modulates miRNA, which limits tumor growth. We propose more multicenter studies into helminth therapy's long-term effects and immune regulation pathways. We hope to treat colorectal cancer patients with helminth therapy and conventional cancer treatments in an integrative setting.
Keywords: colorectal cancer, Precursors of colorectal cancer, helminth therapy, helminth-derived products, Immune Modulation, combination therapy
Received: 22 Aug 2024; Accepted: 24 Mar 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Li, Shan, Zhu, Yao, Lin, Qian, Wang, Xu, Zhang, Li, Zhao and Chen. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Hongyu Li, Zhejiang Shuren University, Hangzhou, China
Keda Chen, Zhejiang Shuren University, Hangzhou, China
Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.