Scientometrics
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2023. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Gastroenterol. Oct 28, 2023; 29(40): 5593-5617
Published online Oct 28, 2023. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v29.i40.5593
Advances and key focus areas in gastric cancer immunotherapy: A comprehensive scientometric and clinical trial review (1999-2023)
Yao-Nan Li, Bin Xie, Ying Zhang, Ming-Hua He, Yang Xing, Dong-Mei Mu, Hong Wang, Rui Guo
Yao-Nan Li, Rui Guo, Clinical Laboratory, The First Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun 130012, Jilin Province, China
Bin Xie, Ying Zhang, Yang Xing, Hong Wang, Cancer Center, The First Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun 130012, Jilin Province, China
Ming-Hua He, College of Computer Science and Technology, Jilin University, Changchun 130012, Jilin Province, China
Dong-Mei Mu, Division of Clinical Research, The First Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun 130012, Jilin Province, China
Author contributions: Wang H and Guo R conceived the study and critically revised the manuscript; Li YN designed the study, performed statistical analyses, and drafted the manuscript; Xie B, Zhang Y, He MH, Mu DM, and Wang H designed the study and wrote the manuscript; Li YN, Guo R, and Wang H performed article retrieval and data interpretation; Mu DM conducted statistical assessment; and all the authors have read and agreed to the final version of the manuscript.
Supported by Natural Science Foundation of China, No. 81500116 and 81601449; and Jilin Science and Technique, No. 20200201472JC and YDZJ202301ZYTS092.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
PRISMA 2009 Checklist statement: The authors have read the PRISMA 2009 Checklist, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the PRISMA 2009 Checklist.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Rui Guo, MD, Associate Professor, Clinical Laboratory, The First Hospital of Jilin University, No. 1 Xinmin Street, Chaoyang District, Changchun 130012, Jilin Province, China. guoruijdyy@jlu.edu.cn
Received: August 28, 2023
Peer-review started: August 28, 2023
First decision: September 11, 2023
Revised: September 25, 2023
Accepted: October 17, 2023
Article in press: October 17, 2023
Published online: October 28, 2023
Processing time: 60 Days and 0.5 Hours
ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS
Research background

Gastric cancer (GC) ranks sixth in incidence among all cancers, and is the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. However, there are significant limitations to the treatment of GC, and more effective and less toxic treatment options are required to prolong the survival of patients with GC. Immunotherapy has recently shown rapid development for the treatment of GC and has great potential.

Research motivation

In recent years, scientometrics has been applied to analyze literature related to certain fields to identify hotspots and predict future trends. However, to the best of our knowledge, there have been no previous studies on scientometric analyses in the field of GC immunotherapy.

Research objectives

To present a comprehensive review of the knowledge framework and research hotspots in the field of GC immunotherapy, we aimed to assist scholars in promptly understanding the current research status and latest developments in this field and provide new ideas and directions for future studies.

Research methods

Publications related to GC immunotherapy between 1999 and 2023 were retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection database on February 1, 2023. An analysis of the 2013 relevant articles retrieved using CiteSpace and VOSviewer was conducted. We get Impact Index Per Article from Reference Citation Analysis (RCA). Additionally, we searched for clinical trials on ClinicalTrials.gov and the International Clinical Trials Registry Platform, and analyzed ongoing clinical trials in this field to predict future developmental trends.

Research results

Through a literature search, we included 2013 relevant articles in this study and used the scientometric software CiteSpace and VOSviewer to analyze 11730 authors, 617 institutions, 71 countries, 726 keywords, citations, and the emergence and timeline of certain information. We have provided specific explanations for the main keywords and analyzed the significance of these research hotspots, including “tumor microenvironment”, “microsatellite instability”, “mismatch repair deficiency”, “dendritic cells”, and “adoptive immunotherapy”. Because immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) play an important role in GC immunotherapy, we have also provided a separate discussion on them. Additionally, we classified the retrieved clinical trials based on the type of immunotherapy and stage of disease and further analyzed the research hotspots and trends in this field in the coming years. The integration of literature and clinical trials has enabled the production of comprehensive and objective research findings.

Research conclusions

Through the use of novel research methods, ideas, and software, we gained innovative and comprehensive insights into the current status and future trends in GC immunotherapy. Our research findings summarize the current state of development in this field and facilitate understanding and learning among scholars. Additionally, this article identifies future developmental directions and trends in this field and provides scientific research ideas for researchers to promote the development of GC immunotherapy.

Research perspectives

Burst keywords and clusters, including tumor microenvironment, microsatellite instability, mismatch repair deficiency, dendritic cells, and adoptive immunotherapy represent the current frontiers of research on immunological factors in cirrhosis. ICIs have also been studied. The combination of multiple drugs and immunotherapeutic methods has received increasing attention.