Food and Medicine Homology Substances Remodel Gut Microbiota for Tumor Therapy

Cancer remains a major global health challenge, and increasing evidence highlights the crucial role of gut microbiota in tumor development and therapeutic responses. Food and medicine homology substances (FMHS), possessing both nutritional and pharmacological properties, have emerged as promising microbiota-modulating agents for cancer prevention and treatment. Recent studies demonstrate that FMHS can remodel gut microbiota composition, promote beneficial microorganisms, suppress pathogenic bacteria, and regulate the production of microbial metabolites such as short-chain fatty acids, bile acids, indole derivatives, and urolithins. Through microbiota-dependent and microbiota-independent mechanisms, FMHS may exert anti-tumor effects by modulating immune responses, restoring intestinal barrier integrity, alleviating chronic inflammation, and directly affecting tumor-related signaling and cellular processes. In addition, FMHS have shown potential to improve the efficacy and reduce the adverse effects of conventional cancer therapies. This review summarizes current advances in the interactions among FMHS, gut microbiota, and cancer, discusses the underlying mechanisms and therapeutic potential, and highlights existing challenges and future directions for clinical translation. A better understanding of microbiota-mediated regulatory networks may facilitate the development of novel microbiota-targeted strategies for precision oncology.