Bladder Cancer Study Retracted Over Figure Concerns

The Journal of Experimental & Clinical Cancer Research has retracted a 2019 article concerning the role of circular RNA hsa_circ_0068871 in bladder cancer progression. The retraction note, published on 05 November 2026, indicates that the Editor-in-Chief no longer has confidence in the reliability of the data reported in the original study. The original article, titled “Circular RNA hsa_circ_0068871 regulates FGFR3 expression and activates STAT3 by targeting miR-181a-5p to promote bladder cancer progression,” was initially published on 18 April 2019 in Volume 38, article number 169. The retraction is attributed to specific concerns regarding the integrity of multiple figures presented in the research.

Specifically, Figure 3f was flagged because certain sections between two panels appear to overlap. Additionally, Figure 5b raised concerns as the STAT3 panel appears to overlap with the Actin panel of Figure 1e from a separate reference, cited as [1] in the retraction note. The source data provided by the authors could not be sufficiently validated.

The retraction note states that none of the authors responded to any correspondence regarding the retraction process. The retraction is published as Volume 45, article number 229 in the 2026 edition of the journal.

Subject of Research: Retraction Note: Circular RNA hsa_circ_0068871 regulates FGFR3 expression and activates STAT3 by targeting miR-181a-5p to promote bladder cancer progression

Article Title: Retraction Note: Circular RNA hsa_circ_0068871 regulates FGFR3 expression and activates STAT3 by targeting miR-181a-5p to promote bladder cancer progression

Article References: Mao, W., Huang, X., Wang, L., Zhang, Z., Liu, M., Li, Y., Luo, M., Yao, X., Fan, J., & Geng, J. (2026). Retraction Note: Circular RNA hsa_circ_0068871 regulates FGFR3 expression and activates STAT3 by targeting miR-181a-5p to promote bladder cancer progression. Journal of Experimental & Clinical Cancer Research, 45(1), Article 229. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13046-026-03866-5

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.1186/s13046-026-03866-5

Keywords: Retraction, Note, Circular, circ, regulates, FGFR3, expression, activates, STAT3, targeting, miR-181a-5p, promote