Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40412382›Full record

ArticleCell reports. Medicine2025

Tumor immune microenvironment delineates progression trajectories of distinct nasopharyngeal carcinoma phenotypes.

Eugenia Li Ling Yeo, Boon Hao Hong, Shi Hui Tay, Jialing Neo, Enya Hui Wen Ong, Wen Min Chow, Kah Min Tan, Kar Perng Low, Adelene Yen Ling Sim, Tianzhu Lu and 24 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Cell reports. Medicine, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing 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

6 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Trial
  2. Review
  3. Review
  4. Article
  5. Review
  6. Review
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

34 authors.

Eugenia Li Ling YeoDivision of Medical Sciences, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore 168583, Singapore.
Boon Hao HongDivision of Medical Sciences, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore 168583, Singapore.
Shi Hui TayDivision of Medical Sciences, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore 168583, Singapore.
Jialing NeoDivision of Medical Sciences, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore 168583, Singapore.
Enya Hui Wen OngDivision of Medical Sciences, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore 168583, Singapore.
Wen Min ChowDivision of Medical Sciences, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore 168583, Singapore.
Kah Min TanDivision of Medical Sciences, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore 168583, Singapore.
Kar Perng LowDivision of Medical Sciences, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore 168583, Singapore.
Adelene Yen Ling SimDivision of Medical Sciences, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore 168583, Singapore.
Tianzhu LuDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Jiangxi Cancer Hospital, Jiangxi 330029, China.
Xin ZhangRadiation Oncology Center, Chongqing University Cancer Hospital, Chongqing 400044, China.
Luo HuangRadiation Oncology Center, Chongqing University Cancer Hospital, Chongqing 400044, China.
Janice Ser Huey TanDivision of Radiation Oncology, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore 168583, Singapore.
Joseph Tien Seng WeeDivision of Radiation Oncology, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore 168583, Singapore.
Yoke Lim SoongDivision of Radiation Oncology, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore 168583, Singapore.
Kam Weng FongDivision of Radiation Oncology, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore 168583, Singapore.
Terence Wee Kiat TanDivision of Radiation Oncology, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore 168583, Singapore.
Sze Yarn SinDivision of Radiation Oncology, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore 168583, Singapore.
Xin Xiu SamDepartment of Anatomical Pathology, Singapore General Hospital, Singapore 169856, Singapore.
Jacqueline Siok Gek HwangDepartment of Anatomical Pathology, Singapore General Hospital, Singapore 169856, Singapore.
Tony Kiat Hon LimDepartment of Anatomical Pathology, Singapore General Hospital, Singapore 169856, Singapore.
Jia-Ying Joey LeeDigital Analytics Laboratory, ImmunoQs Pte. Ltd., Singapore 139952, Singapore; Bioinformatics Institute (BII), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A∗STAR), Singapore 138671, Singapore.
Lit-Hsin LooDigital Analytics Laboratory, ImmunoQs Pte. Ltd., Singapore 139952, Singapore; Bioinformatics Institute (BII), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A∗STAR), Singapore 138671, Singapore.
Khee Chee SooDivision of Medical Sciences, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore 168583, Singapore; Oncology Academic Programme, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore 169857, Singapore.
Narayanan Gopalakrishna IyerDivision of Medical Sciences, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore 168583, Singapore; Oncology Academic Programme, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore 169857, Singapore; Department of Head and Neck Surgery, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore 168583, Singapore.
Kwok Seng LohDepartment of Otolaryngology - Head & Neck Surgery, National University of Singapore, Singapore 119228, Singapore; Division of Surgical Oncology, National University Cancer Institute, Singapore 119074, Singapore.
Joshua K TayDepartment of Otolaryngology - Head & Neck Surgery, National University of Singapore, Singapore 119228, Singapore; Division of Surgical Oncology, National University Cancer Institute, Singapore 119074, Singapore.
Jianjun LiuHuman Genetics, Genome Institute of Singapore, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A∗STAR), Singapore 138672, Singapore; Department of Medicine, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore 119228, Singapore.
Mei Kim AngDivision of Medical Oncology, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore 168583, Singapore.
Joe Poh Sheng YeongDepartment of Anatomical Pathology, Singapore General Hospital, Singapore 169856, Singapore; Integrative Biology for Theranostics, Institute for Molecular and Cell Biology, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A∗STAR), Singapore 138673, Singapore.
Jin Xin BeiDivision of Medical Oncology, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore 168583, Singapore; State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Diagnosis and Therapy, Guangdong Provincial Clinical Research Center for Cancer, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center - Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510060, P.R. China; Department of Experimental Research, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou 510060, P.R. China.
Sze Huey TanOncology Academic Programme, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore 169857, Singapore; Division of Clinical Trials and Epidemiological Sciences, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore 168583, Singapore.
Darren Wan Teck LimDivision of Medical Sciences, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore 168583, Singapore; Oncology Academic Programme, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore 169857, Singapore; Division of Medical Oncology, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore 168583, Singapore.
Melvin Lee Kiang ChuaDivision of Medical Sciences, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore 168583, Singapore; Division of Radiation Oncology, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore 168583, Singapore; Oncology Academic Programme, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore 169857, Singapore. Electronic address: gmsclkm@nus.edu.sg.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

We investigate the molecular landscape of locally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (LA-NPC) subtypes: limited (L), ascending (A), descending (D), and ascending-descending (AD). Using a cohort of 994 patients, we perform germline and somatic whole-exome sequencing (WES), transcriptomic profiling, multiplex immunohistochemistry (mIHC), and spatial histopathological analyses of tumor whole-slide images (WSIs). Germline WES reveals the most variants in AD subtypes, but somatic WES shows no subtype-specific mutations. Transcriptomics reveals higher extracellular matrix (ECM) gene expression in A and AD subtypes and higher immune gene expression in D and AD subtypes, agreeing with deconvolution and mIHC. Tumor immune microenvironment (TIME) of node-negative (N0) and node-positive (N+) L subtypes, considered early nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), resembles A and D subtypes, respectively, suggesting distinct evolutionary trajectories. Spatial WSI analyses identify the most immune-dense tumors among D subtypes and association of TIME with disease-free survival in AD subtypes. These findings highlight the TIME's role in LA-NPC progression and its potential impact on treatment strategies.

Indexed as

Nasopharyngeal CarcinomaNasopharyngeal NeoplasmsTumor MicroenvironmentAdultAgedDisease ProgressionExome SequencingFemaleGene Expression ProfilingGene Expression Regulation, NeoplasticHumansMaleMiddle AgedMutationPhenotypeTranscriptomeascendingdescendinggenomicsnasopharyngeal carcinomatumor immune microenvironment

Identifiers

PMID40412382
PMCPMC12208333

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Registered trials

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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 OpenQuestion graph.