Prediction of prognosis, immune microenvironment and efficacy of immunotherapy based on cell cycle genes in colon cancer

Abstract

Abstract Colon cancer is a common digestive system cancer. Dysregulation of cell cycle gene expression is one of the major risk factors in colon cancer progression. However, the identification of colon cancer subtypes based on cell cycle genes is unclear. In our work, we analyzed the expression, prognosis, genetic alterations of cell cycle genes in colon cancer. We identified two subtypes (clusters A and B) by performing unsupervised clustering. The difference between the two clusters was further assessed, such as clinical features, differential expressed genes (DEGs), pathways, and immune cell infiltration. Based on the DEGs between the two clusters, a cell cycle score (CCscore) system was constructed and its predictive ability for overall survival of colon cancer patients and immunotherapeutic efficacy was validated. Patients with high CCscore have worse survival status, abundant immune cell infiltration, and elevated response to immunotherapy. Our findings may improve our understanding of the cell cycle in colon cancer.