Impact of Pan-Cancer Analysis of The Exportins Family on Prognosis, The Tumour Microenvironment and Its Potential Therapeutic Efficacy

Abstract

Abstract Objective This study aims to provide a comprehensive analysis of the role of the Exportin (XPO) family in cancer development and progression. The XPO family, a group of nuclear transport proteins, has been increasingly implicated in oncogenic processes and tumor growth. Methods Utilizing updated public databases, we employed various bioinformatics methods to examine XPO family expression levels and their associations with patient survival, immune subtypes, tumor microenvironment, stemness scores, drug sensitivity, and DNA methylation in different cancers. Results We found that XPO family expression varies across cancers, indicating a cancer-specific role. Some XPO members were associated with poor prognosis in certain cancers. Their expression correlated with immune subtypes and tumor purity, with lower expression in tumors having higher stromal and immune scores. There was a significant positive correlation between XPO family members and RNA stemness scores, and varying degrees of correlation with DNA stemness scores. Additionally, XPO expression significantly influenced cancer cell drug sensitivity and was generally negatively correlated with gene methylation, which varied across different cancers. Conclusions Our study highlights the distinct roles of XPO family members in cancer, emphasizing their links to immune infiltration, tumor microenvironment, and drug sensitivity. These findings enhance our understanding of XPO's prognostic value and therapeutic potential in cancer, setting a foundation for further research into their mechanisms and applications in cancer diagnosis and treatment.