Copyright: ©Author(s) 2026. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license. No commercial re-use. See permissions. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc.
World J Gastrointest Surg. Jun 27, 2026; 18(6): 118336
Published online Jun 27, 2026. doi: 10.4240/wjgs.118336
Published online Jun 27, 2026. doi: 10.4240/wjgs.118336
Correlation and clinical significance of hepcidin and STAT3 in colorectal cancer
Kang-Bao Li, Qiao-Zhen Hu, Jie Li, Zhong-Yan Li, Kai-Yu Feng, Min Ye, Duo Luo, Xin-Yue Zhang, Peng Chen, Department of Geriatrics, Gastroenterology Ward, Guangzhou First People’s Hospital, The Second Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510180, Guangdong Province, China
Shi Zhang, Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou 510260, Guangdong Province, China
Co-first authors: Kang-Bao Li and Qiao-Zhen Hu.
Co-corresponding authors: Shi Zhang and Peng Chen.
Author contributions: Chen P and Zhang S designed the study and they contribute equally to this study as co-corresponding authors; Li KB and Hu QZ performed the experiments and wrote the manuscript and they contribute equally to this study as co-first authors; Li J and Li ZY collected the samples from patients; Feng KY and Ye M analyzed the data; Luo D and Zhang XY revised the manuscript; all authors approved the final version. The authors have declared no conflict of interest.
Supported by Guangzhou Science and Technology Program, No. 2024A03J1024, No. 2024A04J3997, and No. 2023A04J1271.
Institutional review board statement: This study was approved by the Ethic Committee of the Guangzhou First People’s Hospital (Approval No. K-2023-145-02).
Informed consent statement: All patients provided written informed consent for participation in the study.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
STROBE statement: The authors have read the STROBE Statement—checklist of items, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the STROBE Statement—checklist of items.
Data sharing statement: No additional data are available.
Corresponding author: Peng Chen, PhD, Department of Geriatrics, Gastroenterology Ward, Guangzhou First People’s Hospital, The Second Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, South China University of Technology, No. 1 Panfu Road, Guangzhou 510180, Guangdong Province, China. p2830chenp@sina.com
Received: February 10, 2026
Revised: March 5, 2026
Accepted: March 25, 2026
Published online: June 27, 2026
Processing time: 125 Days and 0.7 Hours
Revised: March 5, 2026
Accepted: March 25, 2026
Published online: June 27, 2026
Processing time: 125 Days and 0.7 Hours
Core Tip
Core Tip: Iron metabolism disorders play a pivotal role in colorectal cancer (CRC) development and progression, with this disordered state closely associated with hepcidin and signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) dysregulation. As a vital transcription factor, STAT3, upon activation, translocates to the cell nucleus and directly binds to the hepcidin gene promoter region, thereby upregulating hepcidin expression. Concurrently, CRC cells adapt to iron overload environments by modulating the expression of iron metabolism-related proteins. This study aims to investigate the expression profiling and characteristics of hepcidin and STAT3, iron metabolism indicators, in patients with CRC.