Ferroptosis: the balance between death and survival in colorectal cancer

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a common malignant tumor associated with high morbidity and mortality. Despite an increase in early screening and treatment options, people with CRC still have a poor prognosis and a low 5-year survival rate. Therefore, mining more therapeutic targets and developing means of early diagnosis and determining prognosis are now imperative in the clinical treatment of CRC. Ferroptosis is a recently identified type of regulated cell death (RCD) characterized, which is identified by the accumulation of iron-dependent lipid peroxidation, thereby causing membrane damage and cell death. Recent studies have shown that ferroptosis is associated with tumors, including CRC, and can be involved in CRC progression; however, the underlying mechanisms are complex and heterogeneous and have not been thoroughly summarized. Therefore, this study reviewed the roles of ferroptosis in CRC progression to target ferroptosis-related factors for CRC treatment. The significance of ferroptosis-related biomarkers and genes in the early diagnosis and prognosis of CRC was also investigated. Furthermore, the limitations of ferroptosis studies in the current treatment of CRC, as well as future research perspectives, are discussed.