Objective To investigate the annual publication trends, research frontiers and hotspots, and clinical trial status of T cell immunoglobulin and mucin domain-containing protein 3(TIM-3) in cancer research.

Methods By using Microsoft Excel, CiteSpace6.3.R1 (Advanced) and VOSviewer, a bibliometric analysis was conducted on 427 articles involving TIM-3 related with tumor based on Web of Science Core Collection database.

Results The research on TIM-3 in cancer has been increasing each year. TIM-3 is co-expressed with other immune checkpoints in tumors. Programmed death receptor ligand 1 (PD-L1) antibody and programmed death receptor 1 (PD-1) therapy are active research directions in TIM-3-related tumor studies.

Conclusions The co-expression of TIM-3 with other immune checkpoints such as PD-1, PD-L1, LAG-3, CTLA-4, and TIGHT is associated with tumor prognosis. TIM-3 induces exhaustion of immune cells such as CD8⁺ T cells, natural killer cells, and dendritic cells, leading to inhibition of anti-tumor immunity. Currently, there are no approved TIM-3-targeted anti-cancer drugs available globally. Although numerous clinical trials are underway, they are still in the preclinical stage.