The Application and Advancement of Herbal Medicine in Gastrointestinal Cancers: A Bibliometrix Visualization and Pan-cancer Analysis

作者：Zhao L, Wang H, Jiang Y, Zhao Z, Liang Q, Li Y, Wang J, Zhong W, Xu Y, Zeng X, Liu T, Yang Y, Wu Q, Xu K · 发表于：Current oncology reports · 年份：2026 · DOI：10.1007/s11912-026-01811-5 · 研究领域：Bibliometric analysis、Gastrointestinal cancers、Herbal medicine、Network pharmacology、Pan-cancer analysis、Precision oncology

INTRODUCTION: Herbal medicine has emerged as an important area of investigation in gastrointestinal cancers owing to its multitarget therapeutic potential and growing integration with modern oncology. However, the rapid expansion of the literature has resulted in a fragmented understanding of the field's knowledge structure, research evolution, and emerging directions. METHODS: A bibliometric analysis was performed using publications retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection between 2016 and 2025. Bibliometrix, VOSviewer, and CiteSpace were employed to evaluate publication trends, collaboration networks, thematic evolution, and knowledge foundations. To further assess the biological relevance of major research themes, representative molecular markers associated with apoptosis, cell-cycle regulation, and epithelial biology were examined using transcriptomic data integrated from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and the Genotype-Tissue Expression (GTEx) project through the Gene Expression Profiling Interactive Analysis (GEPIA) platform. RESULTS: A total of 1,985 publications were included. Research activity increased substantially over the study period, particularly after 2020. Bibliometric analyses revealed a progressive transition from traditional investigations of apoptosis, proliferation, and metastasis toward emerging themes involving tumor microenvironment regulation, ferroptosis, gut microbiota interactions, network pharmacology, and molecular docking. Knowledge s...