Among the five macrophage subsets in ESCC, Mac_1, Mac_2, and Mac_3 expressed higher anti-inflammatory “M2”-associated genes, including CCL18, MRC1, CD163, C1QA, APOE, SPP1, and TREM2 (Fig. 6B–E); most of these genes were also upregulated in tumors compared with nonmalignant samples (Supplementary Fig. 10A, Supplementary Data 1E). Here, CD163 is linked to esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.