Sequencing-Based Dissection of the Inflammation-to-Cancer Transition: Biomarkers and Therapeutic Targets

Chronic inflammation pushes tissues toward malignancy, but the transition from a reversible repair state to a tumor-promoting program is poorly mapped across stages. Colitis-associated colorectal cancer, hepatitis-related hepatocellular carcinoma, and H. pylori-associated gastric cancer are three of the best-characterized inflammation-to-cancer continua, yet we lack a stage-resolved view of how the epigenome, immune microenvironment, and stromal compartment shift as inflammation tips into neoplasia. Most studies still examine the inflammatory disease, the premalignant lesion, and the tumor in isolation, fragmenting the continuum and obscuring the transition points where intervention might matter most.Bulk and single-cell sequencing, spatial profiling, and epigenomic mapping now make it feasible to track clonal evolution, cell-state transitions, and regulatory rewiring across these stages within the same tissue system. A synthesis across such datasets could distinguish broadly shared mechanisms (chronic NF-κB activation, IL-6/STAT3 signaling, metabolic reprogramming) from tissue-specific drivers (microbiome-derived genotoxins in the gut versus bile acid metabolites in the liver), and nominate early biomarkers that single-stage studies miss.This Research Topic aims to identify which molecular programs push a persistently inflamed tissue into a tumor-permissive state, and to define signatures (detectable from a biopsy or blood draw) that distinguish reversible inflammation, a premalignant field, and established cancer. We favor sequencing studies that resolve stage-specific trajectories over broad inflammatory catalogs. Work integrating bulk, single-cell, or spatial transcriptomics with clinical annotation is particularly welcome, especially when paired with functional validation.We invite Original Research, Reviews, Mini-Reviews, Brief Research Reports, and Methods articles using sequencing to investigate inflammation-driven tumor initiation, progression, or treatment response. Priority areas include:• Stage-resolved multi-omics reconstruction of specific inflammation-to-cancer systems (colitis-to-CRC, hepatitis-to-HCC, gastritis-to-gastric cancer, or comparable models)• Validation of sequencing-derived signatures, cell states, or regulatory networks as biomarkers or therapeutic targetsRelevant work may address clonal evolution, immune or stromal reprogramming, treatment resistance, cross-cohort reproducibility, and links to clinical outcomes. Functional confirmation in patient samples, organoids, animal models, or perturbation experiments strengthens a submission considerably. Each manuscript should be driven by a clear biological question, not by data availability. Studies consisting solely of computational analysis of public data, without independent validation or methodological innovation, are outside the scope of this collection. Topic editors: Fangjun Chen, Bangjie Chen, Yu-Chen Liu, Nianping Liu Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/83596/sequencing-based-dissection-of-the-inflammation-to-cancer-transition-biomarkers-and-therapeutic-targets