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World J Clin Oncol. May 24, 2026; 17(5): 113527
Published online May 24, 2026. doi: 10.5306/wjco.v17.i5.113527
Published online May 24, 2026. doi: 10.5306/wjco.v17.i5.113527
Role of lactylation in tumorigenesis: Analysis based on the ten hallmarks of cancer
Jin-Hao Chen, Jiang-Qiuchen Wu, Cun-Ming Lv, College of Basic Medical Sciences, China Three Gorges University, Yichang 443002, Hubei Province, China
Co-first authors: Jin-Hao Chen and Jiang-Qiuchen Wu.
Author contributions: Chen JH and Lv CM reviewed and edited the manuscript, and contributed to original draft preparation; Chen JH and Wu JQ contributed equally to this manuscript as co-first authors; Wu JQ contributed to investigation and data curation; Lv CM contributed to conceptualization. All authors have read and approved the final manuscript.
AI contribution statement: Grammarly and DeepL were used under the authors’ supervision merely for language checking, grammar correction, translation consistency and polishing during manuscript revision. No generative AI including ChatGPT was applied to create any scientific content or main text of the manuscript. No AI tools were involved in study design, data analysis, result interpretation, conclusion formulation or evidence evaluation. All sections of the main text were independently drafted, revised and finalized by the authors. All figures were manually created by the authors with MedPeer and PowerPoint only for layout and formatting; no images were AI-generated.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
Corresponding author: Cun-Ming Lv, Academic Fellow, College of Basic Medical Sciences, China Three Gorges University, No. 8 Daxue Road, Yichang 443002, Hubei Province, China. lvcunming2003@163.com
Received: August 28, 2025
Revised: September 18, 2025
Accepted: March 10, 2026
Published online: May 24, 2026
Processing time: 266 Days and 1.4 Hours
Revised: September 18, 2025
Accepted: March 10, 2026
Published online: May 24, 2026
Processing time: 266 Days and 1.4 Hours
Core Tip
Core Tip: Lactylation links metabolism to gene expression in cancer, serving as a critical epigenetic regulatory mechanism. Lactylation regulates key cancer hallmarks, including uncontrolled growth and invasive metastasis. Targeting lactylation-related enzymes can effectively enhance and improve current cancer therapies. Lactylation markers may serve as reliable cancer biomarkers for early diagnosis and prognosis. Understanding lactylation can lead to personalized cancer treatments.