Global research trends in m⁶A demethylases and cancer: a bibliometric and visualization analysis

The role of m⁶A demethylases in tumorigenesis has garnered increasing attention; however, the global research landscape and thematic evolution in this field remain to be fully elucidated. This study aims to investigate the dynamic scientific development of the m⁶A demethylase-tumor field through bibliometric analysis.

Literature pertaining to m⁶A demethylases and tumors published between 2015 and 2025 was retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC) database. Quantitative and visual analyses were subsequently performed using the bibliometrix package in R. A cross-database sensitivity analysis using PubMed was conducted to assess whether the descriptive patterns were generally consistent across databases.

A total of 761 eligible publications were included in this study. The field has experienced rapid growth since 2020, with an average annual growth rate of 50.92%. China and the United States emerged as the leading contributors in terms of publication output. Research efforts were concentrated at institutions such as Sun Yat-sen University, forming a highly productive collaborative cluster centered on LI YANG. Keyword analysis revealed that gastric cancer, liver cancer, and colorectal cancer constituted the core cancer types examined. The research focus has evolved from early investigations of basic mechanisms to the tumor immune microenvironment, therapeutic resistance, and prognostic evaluation. The annual trend and geographical distribution obtained by PubMed sensitivity analysis are consistent with the direction of WoSCC results, suggesting that the main conclusions have not changed substantially because of database selection.

Research in the m⁶A demethylase-tumor field is advancing rapidly. Current research efforts are predominantly directed toward the remodeling of the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment by demethylases and the underlying mechanisms of therapeutic resistance. These findings provide a valuable direction and a novel perspective for further investigation of m⁶A demethylases in oncology.