Global Trend in Research and Development of CDK4/6 Inhibitors for Clinical Cancer Therapy: A Bibliometric Analysis

Background: Cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) 4/6 inhibitors are frequently used anti-cancer agents in hormone receptor-positive breast cancers. This study assessed the course of research and development (R&D) for CDK4/6 inhibitors in terms of publications over the past two decades. Methods: The Web of Science (WOS) and PubMed databases were searched to identify publications related to research on CDK4/6 inhibitors since 2001. The VOS Viewer software was used to analyze co-occurring keywords to stratify the publication data and collaborations in research. Results: There were 1395 publications related to research on CDK4/6 inhibitors since 2001. Eight of the top 10 institutions originated from the USA and the other two were a Swiss Pharmaceutical Company and French Research Institute. Bardia A, the first author for some of the articles published in the USA, was the most prolific with 25 publications. The journal with the most publications was Cancer Res with 162 publications. Basic research comprised six of the 10 most frequently cited publications and the rest consisted of three reviews and a clinical trial. The most common keywords for publications since 2011 were “palbociclib”, “abemaciclib”, “ribociclib” and “double blind”, indicating the successful development of CDK4/6 inhibitors as anticancer drugs. Conclusions: This study provides a comprehensive review of the CDK4/6 inhibitors R&D history. The data imply that drug development in this field is a decade-long process and clinical trials have been performed before clinical applications. Thereafter, research was conducted on the adverse effects and drug resistance associated with the inhibitors.