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Bibliometric analysis of the association between asthma and cancer: Mechanistic insights and directions for clinical translation
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DOI：10.1016/j.bbcan.2026.189609.png)
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Abstract
En 中文
This bibliometric analysis maps the global research landscape on asthma-cancer associations (2000–2025) using 378 publications. The field is led by the United States (36%) and China (22%), with keyword co-occurrence revealing four research axes: pulmonary disease links, chronic inflammation, allergy-immunity pathways, and notably underdeveloped molecular mechanism studies. We address the central “asthma paradox”—contradictory reports of asthma as a risk, protective, or neutral factor for various cancers—by synthesizing mechanistic hypotheses. A key insight is the dynamic balance between cancer-promoting and -suppressing forces. For example, TGF-β exhibits dose-dependent duality: tumor-suppressive at low levels, but promoting immune evasion and metastasis at high concentrations characterized by severe neutrophilic asthma. Drug repurposing candidates (e.g., montelukast, ciclesonide) show anti-proliferative activity, confirming shared pathogenic pathways. We identify two primary sources of inconsistency: uncontrolled confounders (e.g., smoking) and, critically, the failure to account for asthma heterogeneity. Th2-high (allergic) and Th2-low (non-allergic/neutrophilic) endotypes likely exert divergent effects on cancer risk and progression. Current research remains predominantly epidemiological (53.5%), with mechanistic studies (16.1%) limited by these factors. To advance from associative observations to causal understanding, the study calls for future research to adopt a precision medicine framework. This includes stratifying patients by asthma endotype in large, prospective cohorts and integrating single-cell multi-omics, Mendelian randomization, and real-world data to elucidate the context-dependent molecular mechanisms, such as the dual role of TGF-β, and to validate promising drug repurposing candidates like montelukast.
Keywords:
asthma-cancer association
bibliometric analysis
asthma endotypes
TGF-β
drug repurposing
Journal
B
IF:
0
Papers:
105
Citations:
0
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Cited Papers