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SYSTEMATIC REVIEW article
Front. Oncol.
Sec. Thoracic Oncology
Volume 15 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fonc.2025.1518474
This article is part of the Research TopicMicrobiota-Immune Interactions: A New Frontier in Cancer Treatment OptimizationView all 6 articles
Gut microbes and immunotherapy for non-small cell lung cancer: a systematic review
Provisionally accepted- The Affiliated Hospital of Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, China
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Emerging evidence underscores gut microbiota's role in modulating lung cancer immunotherapy outcomes, though specific impacts on immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) and associated adverse events (AEs) require further clarity. This review synthesizes findings from 15 studies examining gut microbiota-ICI interactions in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), alongside studies investigating antibiotics, proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), probiotics, and diet as modulating factors. Results indicate that Actinobacteria, Bacteroides, and Verrucomicrobiota correlate with positive ICI responses, while Bacillota shows variable associations; notably, Bacillota-enriched patients had fewer immunotherapy-related AEs. The administration of antibiotics and PPIs within a month before ICIs was linked to diminished efficacy, whereas probiotics correlated with enhanced outcomes. Plant-based diets are also aligned with dietary patterns supportive of ICIs. These findings suggest that analyzing gut microbiota composition could improve the ability to predict NSCLC patient responses to ICIs. Additionally, judicious use of antibiotics, PPIs, probiotics, and dietary adjustments may optimize immunotherapy outcomes and mitigate adverse effects.
Keywords: Immunotherapy, Gut Microbiota, Non-small cell lung cancer, immune checkpoint inhibitors, dietary intervention
Received: 28 Oct 2024; Accepted: 14 Apr 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Jin, Jie and Fan. 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: Xianming Fan, The Affiliated Hospital of Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, 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.