Common p53 genetic mutation reveals Achilles' heel in lung cancer

A team of researchers at VCU Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center has identified a new pathway through which mutations in the tumor suppressor p53 gene—found very frequently in human tumors—hijack DNA replication in cancer cells. The new findings published in Cell Death & Differentiation support an innovative framework for how targeting this new pathway could help to stop the replication of lung tumor cells and thwart tumor growth.