Introduction Mitochondria are essential organelles for many aspects of cellular homeostasis. They play an indispensable
role in the development and progression of diseases, particularly cancer which i Show more
Introduction Mitochondria are essential organelles for many aspects of cellular homeostasis. They play an indispensable
role in the development and progression of diseases, particularly cancer which is a major cause of death worldwide. We
analyzed the scientific research output on mitochondria and cancer via PubMed and Web of Science over the period
1990–2023.
Methods Bibliometric analysis was performed by extracting data linking mitochondria to cancer pathogenesis over the
period 1990–2023 from the PubMed database which has a precise and specific search engine. Only articles and reviews
were considered. Since PubMed does not support analyses by countries or institutions, we utilized InCites, an analytical
tool developed and marketed by Clarivate Analytics. We also used the VOSviewer software developed by the Centre for
Science and Technology Studies (Bibliometric Department of Leiden University, Leiden, Netherlands), which enables
us to graphically represent links between countries, authors or keywords in cluster form. Finally, we used iCite, a tool
developed by the NIH (USA) to access a dashboard of bibliometrics for papers associated with a portfolio. This module
can therefore be used to measure whether the research carried out is still basic, translational or clinical.
Results In total, 169,555 publications were identified in PubMed relating to ‘mitochondria’, of which 34,949 (20.61%)
concerned ‘mitochondria’ and ‘dysfunction’ and 22,406 (13.21%) regarded ‘mitochondria’ and ‘cancer’. Hence, not all mitochondrial dysfunctions may lead to cancer or enhance its progression. Qualitatively, the disciplines of journals were
classified into 166 categories among which cancer specialty accounts for only 4.7% of publications. Quantitatively, our
analysis showed that cancer/neoplasms in the liver (2569 articles) were placed in the first position. USA occupied the
first position among countries contributing the highest number of publications (5695 articles), whereas Egypt came in
the thirty-eight position with 84 publications (0.46%). Importantly, USA is the first-ranked country having both the top
1% and 10% impact indicators with 207 and 1459 articles, respectively. By crossing the query ‘liver neoplasms’ (155,678)
with the query ‘mitochondria’ (169,555), we identified 1336 articles in PubMed over the study period. Among these
publications, research areas were classified into 65 categories with the highest percentage of documents included in
biochemistry and molecular biology (28.92%), followed by oncology (23.31%).
Conclusions This study underscores the crucial yet underrepresented role of mitochondria in cancer research. Despite
their significance in cancer pathogenesis, the proportion of related publications remains relatively low. Our findings
Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at https://doi.org/10.1007/s12672-025-
02139-5.
* Abeer El Wakil, abeer_elwakil@alexu.edu.eg; Patrick Devos, patrick.devos@univ-lille.fr; Heba Abdelmegeed, hn.abdelmegeed@
nrc.sci.eg; Alaa Kamel, alaa.kamel_pg@alexu.edu.eg | 1Department of Biological and Geological Sciences, Faculty of Education, Alexandria
University, Alexandria 21526, Egypt. 2Université Lille, Lillometrics, 59000 Lille, France. 3CHU Lille, Direction de la Recherche et de
l’Innovation, 59000 Lille, France. 4Department of Chemistry of Natural Compounds, National Research Centre, Giza, Egypt. 5Department
of Zoology, Faulty of Science, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt.
Discover Oncology
(2025) 16:517
| https://doi.org/10.1007/s12672-025-02139-5
Vol.:(0123456789)
Research
Discover Oncology
(2025) 16:517
| https://doi.org/10.1007/s12672-025-02139-5
highlight the need for further research to deepen our understanding of mitochondrial mechanisms in cancer, which
could pave the way for new therapeutic strategies.
Graphical Abstract Show less
Introduction Mitochondria are essential organelles for many aspects of cellular homeostasis. They play an indispensable
role in the development and progression of diseases, particularly cancer which i Show more
Introduction Mitochondria are essential organelles for many aspects of cellular homeostasis. They play an indispensable
role in the development and progression of diseases, particularly cancer which is a major cause of death worldwide. We
analyzed the scientific research output on mitochondria and cancer via PubMed and Web of Science over the period
1990–2023.
Methods Bibliometric analysis was performed by extracting data linking mitochondria to cancer pathogenesis over the
period 1990–2023 from the PubMed database which has a precise and specific search engine. Only articles and reviews
were considered. Since PubMed does not support analyses by countries or institutions, we utilized InCites, an analytical
tool developed and marketed by Clarivate Analytics. We also used the VOSviewer software developed by the Centre for
Science and Technology Studies (Bibliometric Department of Leiden University, Leiden, Netherlands), which enables
us to graphically represent links between countries, authors or keywords in cluster form. Finally, we used iCite, a tool
developed by the NIH (USA) to access a dashboard of bibliometrics for papers associated with a portfolio. This module
can therefore be used to measure whether the research carried out is still basic, translational or clinical.
Results In total, 169,555 publications were identified in PubMed relating to ‘mitochondria’, of which 34,949 (20.61%)
concerned ‘mitochondria’ and ‘dysfunction’ and 22,406 (13.21%) regarded ‘mitochondria’ and ‘cancer’. Hence, not all mitochondrial dysfunctions may lead to cancer or enhance its progression. Qualitatively, the disciplines of journals were
classified into 166 categories among which cancer specialty accounts for only 4.7% of publications. Quantitatively, our
analysis showed that cancer/neoplasms in the liver (2569 articles) were placed in the first position. USA occupied the
first position among countries contributing the highest number of publications (5695 articles), whereas Egypt came in
the thirty-eight position with 84 publications (0.46%). Importantly, USA is the first-ranked country having both the top
1% and 10% impact indicators with 207 and 1459 articles, respectively. By crossing the query ‘liver neoplasms’ (155,678)
with the query ‘mitochondria’ (169,555), we identified 1336 articles in PubMed over the study period. Among these
publications, research areas were classified into 65 categories with the highest percentage of documents included in
biochemistry and molecular biology (28.92%), followed by oncology (23.31%).
Conclusions This study underscores the crucial yet underrepresented role of mitochondria in cancer research. Despite
their significance in cancer pathogenesis, the proportion of related publications remains relatively low. Our findings
Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at https://doi.org/10.1007/s12672-025-
02139-5.
* Abeer El Wakil, abeer_elwakil@alexu.edu.eg; Patrick Devos, patrick.devos@univ-lille.fr; Heba Abdelmegeed, hn.abdelmegeed@
nrc.sci.eg; Alaa Kamel, alaa.kamel_pg@alexu.edu.eg | 1Department of Biological and Geological Sciences, Faculty of Education, Alexandria
University, Alexandria 21526, Egypt. 2Université Lille, Lillometrics, 59000 Lille, France. 3CHU Lille, Direction de la Recherche et de
l’Innovation, 59000 Lille, France. 4Department of Chemistry of Natural Compounds, National Research Centre, Giza, Egypt. 5Department
of Zoology, Faulty of Science, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt.
Discover Oncology
(2025) 16:517
| https://doi.org/10.1007/s12672-025-02139-5
Vol.:(0123456789)
Research
Discover Oncology
(2025) 16:517
| https://doi.org/10.1007/s12672-025-02139-5
highlight the need for further research to deepen our understanding of mitochondrial mechanisms in cancer, which
could pave the way for new therapeutic strategies.
Graphical Abstract Show less