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Metabolism and Precision Oncology

A special issue of Cancers (ISSN 2072-6694). This special issue belongs to the section "Cancer Pathophysiology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 October 2026 | Viewed by 939

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
1. USF Genomics Program, Center for Global Health and Infectious Diseases, College of Public Health, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33612, USA
2. Global Health, College of Public Health, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33612, USA
Interests: cancer metabolism and redox biology; tumor microenvironment; high-resolution multi-omics and spatial genomics; AI-driven data integration; oncogenic signaling and therapeutic targeting; translation of metabolic insights into precision oncology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

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Guest Editor
1. Department of Molecular Medicine, Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33612, USA
2. Department of Chemistry, College of Arts and Sciences, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33620, USA
Interests: biochemistry and enzymology of cellular metabolism; enzyme structure and function; cofactor and metal homeostasis; redox regulation and metabolic signaling; metabolic disorders and enzymopathies; biochemical pathways linking metabolism to cancer
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue, Metabolism and Precision Oncology, examines how the dynamic landscape of cancer metabolism drives tumor evolution, immune modulation, and therapeutic response. We welcome studies that elucidate metabolic pathways underlying cancer initiation, progression, and resistance, as well as research integrating metabolomics, multi-omics, and spatial or single-cell technologies. Topics include nutrient sensing, mitochondrial and lipid metabolism, redox balance, tumor–host interactions, and metabolism-guided therapeutic strategies. Both original research and reviews linking metabolism to clinical biomarkers, imaging, and treatment outcomes are encouraged. By connecting fundamental biochemistry with translational and clinical perspectives, we aim to reveal how metabolic reprogramming can guide biomarker discovery, therapeutic targeting, and the next generation of precision oncology.

Dr. Rays H.Y. Jiang
Prof. Dr. Gloria C. Ferreira
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Cancers is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • cancer metabolism
  • precision oncology
  • tumor microenvironment
  • immunometabolism
  • metabolic reprogramming
  • redox biology
  • metabolomics
  • lipid metabolism
  • mitochondrial function
  • therapeutic targeting

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

16 pages, 6252 KB  
Article
Genomic and Molecular Associations with Preoperative Immune Checkpoint Inhibition in Patients with Stage III Clear Cell Renal Cell Carcinoma
by Wesley H. Chou, Lucy Lawrence, Emma Neham, Shreeram Akilesh, Amy E. Moran, Christopher L. Corless, Lisa Langmesser, Beyza Cengiz, Kazumi Eckenstein, Jen-Jane Liu, Sudhir Isharwal, Christopher L. Amling, Marshall C. Strother, Nicholas H. Chakiryan and George V. Thomas
Cancers 2026, 18(2), 312; https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers18020312 - 20 Jan 2026
Viewed by 688
Abstract
Background and Objective: Patients with stage III clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) have a high risk for disease recurrence post-nephrectomy. To mitigate overtreatment, there is a pressing need to determine who benefits from immune checkpoint inhibition (ICI) around the time of [...] Read more.
Background and Objective: Patients with stage III clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) have a high risk for disease recurrence post-nephrectomy. To mitigate overtreatment, there is a pressing need to determine who benefits from immune checkpoint inhibition (ICI) around the time of surgical resection. We performed digital spatial analysis of both gene and protein expression in stage III ccRCC tumors, some of which had preoperative ICI exposure. Methods: Nephrectomy specimens from stage III ccRCC patients were analyzed using the Nanostring GeoMx Digital Spatial Profiler. Differential expression analysis was performed and validated using NCT02210117 trial data to identify genes associated with both ICI and clinical response. A gene score was then generated to predict overall survival in patients from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). Key Findings and Limitations: In a small cohort of 19 patients, RNA expression significantly differed based on preoperative ICI exposure and recurrence status—CD8+ effector and central-memory T-cell signatures were less prevalent in the treatment-naïve with recurrence group. Three out of four patients with preoperative immune checkpoint inhibition recurred. External validation yielded a four-gene set (GZMK, GZMA, ITGAL, and IL7R), where higher expression levels predicted better overall survival in the TCGA cohort (p = 0.005). Conclusions and Clinical Implications: Preoperative ICI favorably altered the tumor microenvironment to resemble that of treatment-naïve patients without recurrence but did not translate to improved survival. Upon external validation, the genes GZMK, GZMA, ITGAL, and IL7R were modifiable with ICI and associated with improved overall survival. Further investigation is needed to assess if patients with low baseline expression of these genes may benefit from ICI around the time of surgery. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Metabolism and Precision Oncology)
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