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World J Gastrointest Oncol. Oct 15, 2026; 18(10): 123494
Published online Oct 15, 2026. doi: 10.4251/wjgo.123494
Published online Oct 15, 2026. doi: 10.4251/wjgo.123494
Mechanisms of the gut-lung axis in regulating lung metastasis of colorectal cancer and advances in traditional Chinese medicine intervention
Guo-Li Wang, Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine Department 3/Pulmonary Disease Department 3, The First Affiliated Hospital of Liaoning University of Traditional Chinese Medicine/Liaoning University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shenyang 110000, Liaoning Province, China
Hu Deng, Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine Department 1/Pulmonary Disease Department 1, The First Affiliated Hospital of Liaoning University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shenyang 110000, Liaoning Province, China
Ge Wang, Department of Spleen and Stomach Oncology, Liaoning University of Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital Subsidiary Fourth, Shenyang 110101, Liaoning Province, China
Ni-Ni Qu, Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine Department 1/Pulmonary Disease Department 1, The First Affiliated Hospital of Liaoning University of Traditional Chinese Medi
Co-first authors: Guo-Li Wang and Hu Deng.
Co-corresponding authors: Ge Wang and Ni-Ni Qu.
Author contributions: Wang GL and Deng H contributed equally to this manuscript and are co-first authors. Wang GL and Deng H contributed to conceptualization, data curation, methodology, software, and writing - original draft; Wang G contributed to formal analysis, project administration, visualization; Qu NN contributed to investigation, supervision, validation, and writing - review & editing. Wang G and Qu NN contributed equally to this manuscript and are co-corresponding authors.
AI contribution statement: This manuscript was prepared without the use of any generative AI or large language models.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
Corresponding author: Ni-Ni Qu, Chief Physician, Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine Department 1/Pulmonary Disease Department 1, The First Affiliated Hospital of Liaoning University of Traditional Chinese Medicine/Liaoning University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, No. 33 Beiling Street, Huanggu District, Shenyang 110000, Liaoning Province, China. qvnini@sina.com
Received: May 19, 2026
Revised: June 23, 2026
Accepted: August 10, 2026
Published online: October 15, 2026
Processing time: 122 Days and 3.1 Hours
Revised: June 23, 2026
Accepted: August 10, 2026
Published online: October 15, 2026
Processing time: 122 Days and 3.1 Hours
Core Tip
Core Tip: This review has three main objectives: (1) To analyze the molecular and cellular mechanisms by which the gut-lung axis regulates lung metastasis of colorectal cancer; (2) To critically summarize the evidence for traditional Chinese medicine therapies targeting this axis; and (3) To identify knowledge gaps and propose future research directions. Our main focus is on preclinical studies, as human data is still scarce, but we also discuss the challenges in translational research and the potential of microbiome-based biomarkers.