Despite decades of research, cancer continues to be a major global health concern. The human mouth appears to be a multiplicity of local environments communicating with other organs and causing diseases via microbes. Nowadays, the role of oral microbes in the development and progression of cancer has received increasing scrutiny. At the same time, bioengineering technology and nanotechnology is growing rapidly, in which the physiological activities of natural bacteria are modified to improve the therapeutic efficiency of cancers. These engineered bacteria were transformed to achieve directed genetic reprogramming, selective functional reorganization and precise control. In contrast to endotoxins produced by typical genetically modified bacteria, oral flora exhibits favorable biosafety characteristics. To outline the current cognitions upon oral microbes, engineered microbes and human cancers, related literatures were searched and reviewed based on the PubMed database. We focused on a number of oral microbes and related mechanisms associated with the tumor microenvironment, which involve in cancer occurrence and development. Whether engineering oral bacteria can be a possible application of cancer therapy is worth consideration. A deeper understanding of the relationship between engineered oral bacteria and cancer therapy may enhance our knowledge of tumor pathogenesis thus providing new insights and strategies for cancer prevention and treatment.

尽管经过数十年的研究，癌症仍然是全球主要的健康问题。人类的口腔似乎是与其他器官交流并通过微生物引起疾病的多种局部环境。如今，口腔微生物在癌症发生和进展中的作用受到越来越多的关注。与此同时，生物工程技术和纳米技术正在迅速发展，通过改变天然细菌的生理活性来提高癌症的治疗效率。这些工程菌经过改造，可实现定向基因重编程、选择性功能重组和精确控制。与典型转基因细菌产生的内毒素相比，口腔菌群表现出良好的生物安全特性。为了概述目前对口腔微生物、工程微生物和人类癌症的认识，基于PubMed数据库检索和综述了相关文献。我们重点研究了一些与肿瘤微环境相关的口腔微生物和相关机制，这些微生物参与了癌症的发生和发展。改造口腔细菌是否可以成为癌症治疗的可能应用值得考虑。更深入地了解工程口腔细菌与癌症治疗之间的关系可能会增强我们对肿瘤发病机制的了解，从而为癌症的预防和治疗提供新的见解和策略。