Lipidomic Profiling in Cancer: Phospholipid Alterations and their Role in Tumor Progression

Abstract: Phospholipids play a crucial role in various aspects of cancer biology, including tumor progression, metastasis, and cell survival. Recent studies have highlighted the signifi-cance of phospholipid metabolism and signaling in multiple cancer types, such as breast, cer-vical, prostate, bladder, colorectal, liver, lung, melanoma, mesothelioma, and oral cancer. Al-terations in phospholipid profiles, particularly in phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylethan-olamine, have been identified as potential biomarkers for cancer diagnosis and prognosis. Moreover, specific phospholipids and their metabolic pathways have been implicated in cancer cell proliferation, migration, invasion, and resistance to therapy. Enzymes involved in phos-pholipid metabolism, such as phospholipases, choline kinase, and autotaxin, have emerged as promising therapeutic targets. The harmony between phospholipids and oncogenic signaling pathways, such as PI3K/AKT and Wnt/β-catenin, further emphasizes their importance in can-cer progression. Additionally, phospholipids have been shown to modify the tumor microen-vironment, influencing immune responses and angiogenesis. The application of advanced lip-idomic profiling techniques, such as mass spectrometry, has facilitated the identification of novel phospholipid biomarkers and provided insights into the metabolic reprogramming of cancer cells. Furthermore, phospholipid-based nanocarriers have demonstrated potential in tar-geted drug delivery and cancer immunotherapy. In conclusion, the multifaceted roles of phos-pholipids in cancer biology highlight their significance as diagnostic markers, prognostic in-dicators, as well as therapeutic targets, offering new avenues for cancer management and treat-ment. This review is conducted in order to answer three questions: What is the role of phos-pholipids in different types of cancer? What are the key lipidomic biomarkers for different cancers? What are the key effects of phospholipids on various types of cancer cell survival?