Advances in the relationships between gastrointestinal microbiota and cancer / 中华微生物学和免疫学杂志

ABSTRACT

Commensal microorganisms that colonize barrier surfaces of all multicellular organisms exist in harmony with their hosts and have an important effect on both immune and non-immune functions of their hosts. Numerous researches have shown that gastrointestinal microbiota being one of the most important commensal microorganisms plays a critical role in the occurrence, development and treatment of cancer. As-signing causal roles in cancer to specific microbes and microbiotas, unraveling host-microbiota interactions with environmental factors in carcinogenesis, and applying such knowledge to cancer diagnosis and treatment are areas of intensive interest. This review considers how microbes and the microbiota may amplify or miti-gate carcinogenesis, responsiveness to cancer therapeutics, and cancer-associated complications.