Evidence mapPaperPMID 40898263Full record

ArticleInfectious agents and cancer2025

Genetic and transcriptional insights reveal hepatitis C virus as a driver of kidney cancer.

Qiankun Wang, Yi Wang, Tongxin Yin, Yuting Feng, Huihao Ren, Xiao Xiao, Jiaoyuan Li, Liming Cheng

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Article in Infectious agents and cancer, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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1 · What the graph read from it

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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Qiankun WangDepartment of Laboratory Medicine, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, P. R. China.
Yi WangDepartment of Laboratory Medicine, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, P. R. China.
Tongxin YinDepartment of Laboratory Medicine, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, P. R. China.
Yuting FengDepartment of Laboratory Medicine, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, P. R. China.
Huihao RenDepartment of Laboratory Medicine, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, P. R. China.
Xiao XiaoDepartment of Laboratory Medicine, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, P. R. China.
Jiaoyuan LiDepartment of Laboratory Medicine, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, P. R. China. lijiaoyuan@tjh.tjmu.edu.cn.
Liming ChengDepartment of Laboratory Medicine, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, P. R. China. chengliming2015@163.com.

Funding

National Natural Science Foundation of China 81903394National Natural Science Foundation of China 82272418
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectivesObservational studies suggest a potential link between Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and extrahepatic cancers, but the causal relationship remains unclear.

methodsWe applied a two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) approach to evaluate the causal relationships between HCV infection and various extrahepatic cancers. A two-step MR was used to identify potential mediators, followed by colocalization analysis to identify HCV-associated susceptibility genes (HSGs). A pan-cancer analysis using TCGA data was conducted, and a prognostic model based on HSGs was developed using least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression and Cox models. Genetic risk score (GRS) analysis from the UK Biobank validated our findings.

resultsWe identified a causal link between genetic susceptibility to HCV infection and kidney cancer, both in univariable and multivariable MR analyses. The two-step MR identified five mediators in the causal pathway. IRF5 was highlighted as a key HSG in both the colocalization and pan-cancer analyses. Our prognostic model incorporating three HSGs predicted overall survival (OS) in kidney cancer patients. GRS analysis confirmed the association.

conclusionsThe present study provides evidence supporting a causal link between HCV infection and the development of kidney cancer.

Indexed as

Extrahepatic cancersGenetic risk scoreHCVMendelian randomizationPrognosis

Identifiers

PMID40898263
PMCPMC12406469

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.