A previous study indicated that PD-L1 can enhance glycolysis by regulating HK2 expression in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), indicating that HK2 may play a role in tumour immunity [50], which is consistent with our results also showing that the HK2-regulated genes were mainly enriched in immune-related signalling pathways and the activation of immune cells (Fig. 6C-I). This evidence concerns the gene CD274 and non-small cell lung carcinoma.