Evidence map›Paper›PMID 28270698›Full record

ReviewNature reviews. Gastroenterology & hepatology2017

Gut microbiota modulation of chemotherapy efficacy and toxicity.

James L Alexander, Ian D Wilson, Julian Teare, Julian R Marchesi, Jeremy K Nicholson, James M Kinross

2 registry-linked trialsAbstract readReview
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Review in Nature reviews. Gastroenterology & hepatology, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to 2 registered trials, which are not on this map. Cited by 571 papers, 6 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
571citing papers in PubMed, 6 pooled it
–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.

NCT03870607 phase2unknown statusnot on this mapstarted 2019, after this paper: background citation

A Randomized Phase II Study of the Administration of Prebiotics and Probiotics During Definitive Treatment With Chemotherapy-radiotherapy for Patients With Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Anal Canal (BISQUIT)

TypeinterventionalSponsorAC Camargo Cancer CenterRan2019 to 2024Enrolled75ConditionsAnal Cancer Squamous CellArmsprebiotics in combination with probiotics
NCT06560879 phase2enrolling by invitationnot on this mapstarted 2025, after this paper: background citation

Effectiveness of Probiotics for the Prevention of Gastrointestinal Toxicity and Changes in Gut Microbiota in Children With Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia

TypeinterventionalSponsorNational Institute of Pediatrics, MexicoRan2025 to 2026Enrolled120ConditionsProbiotics, Gastrointestinal Diseases, Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-LymphomaArmsLactobacillus casei, Lactobacillus rhamnosus, Bifidobacterium bifidum, Placebo
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

571 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

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  19. Effects of exercise on gut microbiota in patients with cancer: a scoping review.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2026
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511 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

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.

James L AlexanderCentre for Digestive and Gut Health, Department of Surgery &Cancer, 10th Floor QEQM Building, St Mary's Hospital Campus, Praed Street, Imperial College London, London, W2 1NY, UK.
Ian D WilsonComputational and Systems Medicine, Department of Surgery &Cancer, Sir Alexander Fleming Building, Imperial College London, South Kensington, London, SW7 2DD, UK.
Julian TeareCentre for Digestive and Gut Health, Department of Surgery &Cancer, 10th Floor QEQM Building, St Mary's Hospital Campus, Praed Street, Imperial College London, London, W2 1NY, UK.
Julian R MarchesiCentre for Digestive and Gut Health, Department of Surgery &Cancer, 10th Floor QEQM Building, St Mary's Hospital Campus, Praed Street, Imperial College London, London, W2 1NY, UK.
Jeremy K NicholsonComputational and Systems Medicine, Department of Surgery &Cancer, Sir Alexander Fleming Building, Imperial College London, South Kensington, London, SW7 2DD, UK.
James M KinrossCentre for Digestive and Gut Health, Department of Surgery &Cancer, 10th Floor QEQM Building, St Mary's Hospital Campus, Praed Street, Imperial College London, London, W2 1NY, UK.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Evidence is growing that the gut microbiota modulates the host response to chemotherapeutic drugs, with three main clinical outcomes: facilitation of drug efficacy; abrogation and compromise of anticancer effects; and mediation of toxicity. The implication is that gut microbiota are critical to the development of personalized cancer treatment strategies and, therefore, a greater insight into prokaryotic co-metabolism of chemotherapeutic drugs is now required. This thinking is based on evidence from human, animal and in vitro studies that gut bacteria are intimately linked to the pharmacological effects of chemotherapies (5-fluorouracil, cyclophosphamide, irinotecan, oxaliplatin, gemcitabine, methotrexate) and novel targeted immunotherapies such as anti-PD-L1 and anti-CLTA-4 therapies. The gut microbiota modulate these agents through key mechanisms, structured as the 'TIMER' mechanistic framework: Translocation, Immunomodulation, Metabolism, Enzymatic degradation, and Reduced diversity and ecological variation. The gut microbiota can now, therefore, be targeted to improve efficacy and reduce the toxicity of current chemotherapy agents. In this Review, we outline the implications of pharmacomicrobiomics in cancer therapeutics and define how the microbiota might be modified in clinical practice to improve efficacy and reduce the toxic burden of these compounds.

Indexed as

AnimalsAnti-Bacterial AgentsAntineoplastic AgentsBacterial InfectionsBacterial TranslocationBiodiversityBiomarkersCTLA-4 AntigenDietDisease Models, AnimalForecastingGastrointestinal DiseasesGastrointestinal MicrobiomeHumansImmunomodulationImmunotherapyAnti-Bacterial AgentsAntineoplastic AgentsBiomarkersCTLA-4 AntigenPDCD1 protein, humanPrebioticsProgrammed Cell Death 1 Receptor

Identifiers

PMID28270698

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

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 OpenQuestion graph.