Deregulation of cell signaling in cancer

Oncogenic mutations disrupt the regulatory circuits that govern cell function, enabling tumor cells to undergo de-regulated mitogenesis, to resist to pro-apoptotic insults, and to invade through tissue boundaries. Cancer cell biology has played a crucial role in elucidating the signaling mechanisms by which oncogenic mutations sustain these malignant behaviors and thereby in identifying rational targets for cancer drugs. The efficacy of such targeted therapies illustrate the power of a reductionist approach to the study of cancer.