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Review
. 2024 Dec 5;14(12):683.
doi: 10.3390/metabo14120683.

Emerging Role of Gut Microbiota in Breast Cancer Development and Its Implications in Treatment

Rashid Mir  1 , Shrooq A Albarqi  2 , Wed Albalawi  2 , Hanan E Alatwi  3 , Marfat Alatawy  3 , Ruqaiah I Bedaiwi  1 , Reema Almotairi  1 , Eram Husain  1 , Mohammad Zubair  4 , Ghaida Alanazi  2 , Shouq S Alsubaie  2 , Razan I Alghabban  2 , Khalid A Alfifi  5 , Shabnam Bashir  6
Affiliations
Review

Emerging Role of Gut Microbiota in Breast Cancer Development and Its Implications in Treatment

Rashid Mir et al. Metabolites. .

Abstract

Background: The human digestive system contains approximately 100 trillion bacteria. The gut microbiota is an emerging field of research that is associated with specific biological processes in many diseases, including cardiovascular disease, obesity, diabetes, brain disease, rheumatoid arthritis, and cancer. Emerging evidence indicates that the gut microbiota affects the response to anticancer therapies by modulating the host immune system. Recent studies have explained a high correlation between the gut microbiota and breast cancer: dysbiosis in breast cancer may regulate the systemic inflammatory response, hormone metabolism, immune response, and the tumor microenvironment. Some of the gut bacteria are related to estrogen metabolism, which may increase or decrease the risk of breast cancer by changing the number of hormones. Further, the gut microbiota has been seen to modulate the immune system in respect of its ability to protect against and treat cancers, with a specific focus on hormone receptor-positive breast cancer. Probiotics and other therapies claiming to control the gut microbiome by bacterial means might be useful in the prevention, or even in the treatment, of breast cancer. Conclusions: The present review underlines the various aspects of gut microbiota in breast cancer risk and its clinical application, warranting research on individualized microbiome-modulated therapeutic approaches to breast cancer treatment.

Keywords: breast cancer; cancer immunotherapy; dysbiosis; gut microbiota; hormone metabolism.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The biological events are presented in the diagram which demonstrates how gut microbiota affects breast cancer. It begins with gut microbiota initiating catabolic processes throughout the body with emphases on the immune system and hormones. These systemic changes can then result in dysbiosis which is the disturbance of the normal bacterial flora in the gut. Dysbiosis is known to cause and aggravate the process of breast cancer when present in the body. Finally, the diagram also indicates that we can influence this process in some ways using modulation strategies such as the use of probiotics, changes in the diet and other therapeutic measures that are directed at the restoration of the needed and desired balance in the gut as well as the prevention or treatment of breast cancer.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Breast cancer and the influence of gut microbiota. This figure depicts the role of gut microbiota in breast cancer progression, highlighting mechanisms such as immune modulation, estrogen level alteration, and the production of bacterial metabolites.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Interaction of gut microbiota and estrogen metabolism in breast cancer risk. Illustration of estrogen metabolism by the liver, the role of gut microbiota (estrobolome) in estrogen reabsorption, and its impact on hormone-sensitive breast cancer risk.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Gut flora and breast cancer interactions. This diagram illustrates the complex relationship between gut microbiota and breast cancer, showing how gut flora influences cancer development, progression, and treatment through various mechanisms.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Changes in breast microbiome composition in response to cancer. This diagram illustrates the differences in microbial composition between healthy and cancerous breast tissues, highlighting the specific bacteria that increase or decrease in response to breast cancer.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Key mechanisms of the breast microbiome’s influence on breast cancer development and progression.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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