Evidence mapPaperPMID 41765876Full record

ReviewBiological procedures online2026

Key molecular mechanisms and regulatory networks in colorectal cancer liver metastasis.

Zhipeng Zhang, Yuchun Ni, Jie Wang, Jianhui Tian, Likun Liu, Shulan Hao

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in Biological procedures online, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Zhipeng Zhang *Department of Oncology, Shanxi Province Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanxi Province Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Taiyuan, 030012, Shanxi, China.
Yuchun Ni *Department of Oncology, Shanxi Province Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanxi Province Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Taiyuan, 030012, Shanxi, China.
Jie WangDepartment of Oncology, Shanxi Province Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanxi Province Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Taiyuan, 030012, Shanxi, China.
Jianhui TianClinical Oncology Center, Shanghai Municipal Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 200071, China. tjhhawk@163.com.
Likun LiuDepartment of Oncology, Shanxi Province Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanxi Province Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Taiyuan, 030012, Shanxi, China. llkun133@126.com.
Shulan HaoDepartment of Oncology, Shanxi Province Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanxi Province Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Taiyuan, 030012, Shanxi, China. dxl328321@163.com.

Funding

Shanxi Province Major Science and Technology Research Special Project 2022XM10the Central Government's Guiding Local Science and Technology Development Fund YDZJSX20231C020the Traditional Chinese Medicine Innovation Team of the Shanxi Provincial Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine ZYYTD2024001
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Colorectal cancer (CRC) continues to show rising incidence and mortality worldwide, with liver metastasis representing the leading cause of death among affected patients. Epidemiological data indicate that approximately 49% of CRC-related deaths are associated with hepatic metastases, and about 25% of patients still develop liver metastasis even after undergoing curative resection. The interplay of various cytokines and immune cells within the tumor microenvironment (TME), along with tumor metabolic reprogramming and gut microbiota, collectively underpins the process of colorectal cancer liver metastasis (CRLM). To date, multiple genes, signaling pathways, and cellular components have been identified as key contributors to the development of CRLM. Although the precise mechanisms driving CRLM remain incompletely understood, emerging evidence suggests that liver metastasis is not restricted to advanced CRC stages and may already be present in a subset of early-stage patients. Based on current evidence, this review proposes that effective anti-metastatic strategies should shift from single-pathway targeting toward integrated interventions that simultaneously regulate the following three dimensions: circulating tumor cells (and their EMT process) as the ‘seeds’, the tumor microenvironment as the ‘soil’, and the gut microbiota and metabolic reprogramming as the ‘environmental modifiers’. This article systematically summarizes the mechanisms and recent advances in the molecular regulatory networks underlying colorectal cancer liver metastasis, with a particular focus on the roles of immune cells and related cytokines in the tumor microenvironment. It aims to provide new insights and potential therapeutic targets for the comprehensive management of this disease and highlights the need to further investigate interactions among these mechanisms, accelerate the development of translational biomarkers, and thereby drive key breakthroughs in the field.

Indexed as

Colorectal cancer liver metastasisGut microbiotaMetabolic reprogrammingTumor microenvironment

Identifiers

PMID41765876
PMCPMC13059156

What Socratic holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

None linked

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.