[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"doc-seo-349455-105":3,"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":80,"doc-detail-349455-en":130},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"ok",{"site_id":7,"language":8,"slug":9,"title":10,"keywords":11,"description":12,"schema_data":13,"social_meta":73,"head_meta":75,"extra_data":77,"updated_unix":79},105,"en","the-role-of-galectins-in-modulating-the-tumor-microenvironment-and-driving-metastasis-in-skin-cancers-review","The role of galectins in modulating the tumor microenvironment and driving metastasis in skin cancers - Review - Current knowledge summary","","Galectins, a family of β-galactoside-binding lectins, regulate tumor progression, immune evasion, and therapy resistance in skin cancers. Galectin-1, Galectin-3, and Galectin-9 are highlighted for their roles in shaping the tumor microenvironment via intracellular and extracellular signaling. Galectin-1/3 modulate immune checkpoints and cancer-associated fibroblast activation, while Galectin-9 interacts with TIM-3 to induce T-cell exhaustion. Preclinical and early clinical studies using galectin inhibitors, including belapectin and GB1211, support translational potential. The review synthesizes galectin expression and function across melanoma and non-melanoma cancers, emphasizing immune escape, therapeutic resistance, and challenges for galectin-targeted interventions.",{"@graph":14,"@context":72},[15,34,55],{"@type":16,"itemListElement":17},"BreadcrumbList",[18,23,27,31],{"item":19,"name":20,"@type":21,"position":22},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",1,{"item":24,"name":25,"@type":21,"position":26},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/","Document",2,{"item":28,"name":29,"@type":21,"position":30},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/research-report/","Research & Report",3,{"item":32,"name":10,"@type":21,"position":33},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/the-role-of-galectins-in-modulating-the-tumor-microenvironment-and-driving-metastasis-in-skin-cancers-review/349455/",4,{"url":32,"name":10,"@type":35,"image":36,"author":41,"headline":10,"publisher":44,"fileFormat":47,"inLanguage":8,"description":12,"dateModified":48,"datePublished":49,"encodingFormat":47,"isAccessibleForFree":50,"interactionStatistic":51},"DigitalDocument",{"url":37,"@type":38,"width":39,"height":40},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/the-role-of-galectins-in-modulating-the-tumor-microenvironment-and-driving-metastasis-in-skin-cancers-review/349455.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":42,"@type":43},"Fans","Person",{"url":19,"name":45,"@type":46},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-09-23","2026-09-22",true,{"@type":52,"interactionType":53,"userInteractionCount":26},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":54},"ViewAction",{"@type":56,"mainEntity":57},"FAQPage",[58,64,68],{"name":59,"@type":60,"acceptedAnswer":61},"Which galectins are most extensively investigated in skin cancers in this review?","Question",{"text":62,"@type":63},"Galectin-1, Galectin-3, and Galectin-9 receive the most focus for their roles in regulating the tumor microenvironment and supporting metastasis-related processes.","Answer",{"name":65,"@type":60,"acceptedAnswer":66},"How do Galectin-1 and Galectin-3 contribute to immune evasion?",{"text":67,"@type":63},"They modulate immune checkpoint pathways and affect cancer-associated fibroblast activation, influencing immune regulation in ways that support tumor escape.",{"name":69,"@type":60,"acceptedAnswer":70},"What is the reported mechanism involving Galectin-9 and T cells?",{"text":71,"@type":63},"Galectin-9 interacts with TIM-3 to drive T-cell exhaustion, contributing to an immunosuppressive environment that favors tumor survival.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":32,"og:type":74,"og:title":10,"og:site_name":45,"og:description":12},"article",{"robots":76,"canonical":32},"index,follow",{"doc_id":78,"site_id":7},349455,1790164057,{"code":4,"msg":81,"data":82},"success",[83,87,91,95,100,105,110,114,119,122,126],{"id":22,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":84,"show_sort_weight":85,"slug":86},"Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":26,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":88,"show_sort_weight":89,"slug":90},"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":33,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":92,"show_sort_weight":93,"slug":94},"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":96,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":97,"show_sort_weight":98,"slug":99},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":101,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":102,"show_sort_weight":103,"slug":104},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":106,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":107,"show_sort_weight":108,"slug":109},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":111,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":29,"show_sort_weight":112,"slug":113},8,30,"research-report",{"id":115,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":116,"show_sort_weight":117,"slug":118},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":117,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":120,"show_sort_weight":117,"slug":121},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":123,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":124,"show_sort_weight":123,"slug":125},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":127,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":128,"show_sort_weight":96,"slug":129},19,"General","general",{"code":4,"msg":81,"data":131},{"doc_id":78,"user_id":132,"nickname":42,"user_avatar":133,"doc_module":4,"category_id":111,"category_name":29,"doc_title":10,"doc_description":12,"doc_content":134,"file_id":135,"file_url":136,"file_type":137,"file_size":138,"view_count":26,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":22,"is_downloadable":22,"audit_status":22,"page_count":139,"language":140,"language_code":8,"site_id":7,"html_lang":8,"table_of_contents":141,"faqs":142,"seo_title":143,"seo_description":12,"update_tm":144,"read_time":145},5909892330395,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_6f874abed73319feea01a86fa6f0fab8","Dabagh et al. Biological Research (2026) 59:40 Biological Research  \n[https://doi.org/10.1186/s40659-026-00695-w](https://doi.org/10.1186/s40659-026-00695-w)  \nREVIEW Open Access  \nThe role of galectins in modulating the tumor  microenvironment and driving metastasis in skin cancers  \nMohsen Dabagh 1†, Alina Ciceu2†, Cornel Balta2†, Maria Consiglia Trotta3, Bartolo Ferraro4,5, Giovanbattista D’Amico6, Anca Hermenean2,7* and Vlad Mihail Voiculescu8,9  \nAbstract  \nGalectins, a family of β-galactoside–binding lectins, are key regulators of tumor progression, immune evasion, and therapy resistance in skin cancers. Among them, Galectin-1, Galectin-3, and Galectin-9 have been most extensively investigated for their multifaceted roles in shaping the tumor microenvironment. These proteins influence cancer cell proliferation, apoptosis, angiogenesis, and immune cell responses through both intracellular and extracellular mechanisms. Galectin-1 and Galectin-3 modulate immune checkpoint pathways and cancer-associated fibroblast activation, whereas Galectin-9 interacts with TIM-3 to induce T-cell exhaustion. Other family members, including Galectin-7 and Galectin-8, display context-dependent functions that may either promote or inhibit tumor development. Recent preclinical and early clinical trials targeting galectins, such as the Gal-3 inhibitors belapectin and GB1211, highlight their translational potential as adjuncts to immunotherapy. This review summarizes current knowledge on galectin expression and function in melanoma and non-melanoma skin cancers, emphasizing their contribution to immune escape and therapeutic resistance, as well as challenges and perspectives for galectintargeted interventions.  \nKeywords Skin cancer, Galectins, Tumor microenvironment, Immune evasion, Metastasis, Therapy resistance, Biomarkers  \n†Mohsen Dabagh, Alina Ciceu and Cornel Balta contributed equally to this work.  \n*Correspondence:  \nAnca Hermenean  \n[hermenean.anca@uvvg. ro](hermenean.anca@uvvg. ro)  \n1Multidisciplinary Doctoral School, Vasile Goldis Western University of Arad, Arad, Romania  \n2Institute of Life Sciences, Vasile Goldis Western University of Arad, Arad, Romania  \n3Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli , Caserta, Italy  \n4Institute of Cardiovascular Physiology and Pathophysiology, Biomedical Center, Ludwig-Maximilian-University Munich, Munich, Germany 5Medizinische Klinik und Poliklinik I, Klinikum der Universität, LudwigMaximilians-University Munich, Munich, Germany  \n6School of Geriatrics, University of Studies of L’Aquila, 67010 L’Aquila, Italy 7Department of Histology, Faculty of Medicine, Vasile Goldis Western University of Arad, Arad, Romania  \n8Department of Dermatology, Carol-Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Bucharest, Romania  \n9Department of Dermatology, Elias University Emergency Hospital, Bucharest, Romania  \n© The Author(s) 2026. Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit [http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/. The)[. The](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/. The)[ ](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/. The)Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver ([http","cbCaiok3Ng2DtO8J","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaiok3Ng2DtO8J","pdf",1538425,13,"English","# Introduction\n## Galectins: structure, secretion, and functions\n## Galectins within the tumor microenvironment\n## Galectins in skin cancer contexts","[{\"question\":\"Which galectins are most extensively investigated in skin cancers in this review?\",\"answer\":\"Galectin-1, Galectin-3, and Galectin-9 receive the most focus for their roles in regulating the tumor microenvironment and supporting metastasis-related processes.\"},{\"question\":\"How do Galectin-1 and Galectin-3 contribute to immune evasion?\",\"answer\":\"They modulate immune checkpoint pathways and affect cancer-associated fibroblast activation, influencing immune regulation in ways that support tumor escape.\"},{\"question\":\"What is the reported mechanism involving Galectin-9 and T cells?\",\"answer\":\"Galectin-9 interacts with TIM-3 to drive T-cell exhaustion, contributing to an immunosuppressive environment that favors tumor survival.\"}]","The role of galectins in modulating the tumor microenvironment and driving metastasis in skin cancers - Review - Current knowledge summary | PDF",1790083394,33]