Objective:

To examine the relationship between gut microbiota and colorectal cancer (CRC) development and management, focusing on specific therapeutic strategies.

Key Findings:

• Gut dysbiosis is strongly linked to CRC development and therapeutic response, suggesting potential targets for intervention.
• Specific microbial profiles may facilitate colorectal carcinogenesis through genotoxic effects, inflammation, and immune dysregulation, indicating pathways for therapeutic exploration.
• Novel therapeutic approaches include probiotics, prebiotics, and fecal microbiota transplantation, which may enhance treatment efficacy.

Interpretation:

The gut microbiome plays a crucial role in CRC through its influence on immune responses and treatment efficacy, necessitating further research to establish causation and therapeutic applications, particularly in personalized medicine.

Limitations:

• Current human data is predominantly observational, limiting causal inference and necessitating caution in interpretation.
• Specific carcinogenic microorganisms remain unidentified, complicating targeted interventions.
• Challenges in translating findings into clinical practice due to individual variability, which may affect treatment outcomes.

Conclusion:

A microbiota-immune-metabolism-therapy framework is proposed to unify the understanding of CRC mechanisms and treatment responses, emphasizing the need for more rigorous research to validate this model.