The role of m6A modification in non-small cell lung cancer: functional insights and impact on therapy resistance.

Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is currently the most prevalent malignancy worldwide, and its therapeutic resistance poses an enormous challenge to current therapeutic efforts. As the most common internal modification of RNA molecules, n6-methyladenosine (m6A) affects RNA structure and function and regulates gene expression. It is widely acknowledged that this modification contributes to progression and resistance to drug therapy in NSCLC. Because tumors exhibit heterogeneous characteristics, the functional expression of m6A-modifying enzymes and the molecular mechanisms and downstream pathways they regulate exhibit distinct phenotypic characteristics. By precisely controlling the methylation process, understanding the specific regulatory mechanisms involved in m6A modification may result in more effective treatments for NSCLC progression and drug resistance. This review summarizes recent functional analyses of m6A modifications in NSCLC, focusing on their impact on therapeutic responses via modulation of specific gene expression levels. Furthermore, we examined the potential of m6A modifications as therapeutic interventions and predictive biomarkers for drug resistance, aiming to enable individualized and precise therapeutic strategies to treat NSCLC.