Heliyon (Jun 2024)

A bibliometric study of the intellectual base and global research hotspots for single-cell sequencing [2009–2022] in breast cancer

  • Shan Liu,
  • Xudong Li,
  • Ying Zhang,
  • Yuhan Deng,
  • Zehao Li,
  • Yunan Zhu,
  • Xue Li,
  • Yuefeng Shang,
  • Guang Yang,
  • Xiaolu Zhan,
  • Yingpu Li,
  • He Ren

Journal volume & issue
Vol. 10, no. 12
p. e33219

Abstract

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Background: Breast cancer is the most widespread malignant tumor worldwide. Single-cell sequencing technology offers novel insights and methods to understand the onset, progression, and treatment of tumors. Nevertheless, there is currently an absence of a thorough and unbiased report on the comprehensive research status of single-cell sequencing in breast cancer. This study seeks to summarize and quantify the dynamics and trends of research on breast cancer single-cell sequencing by bibliometric analysis. Methods: Research articles and reviews related to breast cancer single-cell sequencing were selected from the WoSCC database. Visualization of data regarding countries, institutions, authors, references, and keywords was performed by CiteSpace and VOSviewer software. Results: 583 articles and reviews were analyzed in this study. The quantity of publications related to breast cancer single-cell sequencing has been increasing annually. These studies originate from 302 institutions in 46 countries, with YMAX S WICHA producing the most publications and WANG Y being the most cited author. Nature Communications is the most researched journal, while Nature holds the highest number of citations. These journals predominantly cover topics in the molecular/biological/immunological fields. Moreover, an analysis of reference and keyword bursts revealed that current research trends in this area are primarily centered on “clonal evolution,” “tumor microenvironment,” and “immunotherapy.” Conclusion: Breast cancer single-cell sequencing is a rapidly growing area of scientific interest. Future research requires more frequent and in-depth collaborations among countries, institutions, and authors. Furthermore, “clonal evolution,” “tumor microenvironment,” and “immunotherapy” are likely to become major focal points in upcoming research on breast cancer single-cell sequencing.

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