The concept of 'oncogene addiction' has important implications for targeted therapy. It refers to the phenomenon where a cancer cell:

• A Requires multiple simultaneous oncogenic driver mutations for survival
• B Develops resistance by upregulating alternative survival pathways
• C Loses the capacity for apoptosis due to overexpression of BCL-2
• D Becomes critically dependent on continued activity of a single oncogenic pathway for growth and survival ✓

Explanation

Oncogene addiction describes a state where a tumor cell becomes so dependent (addicted) on the sustained activity of a single activated oncogene that withdrawal of that signal leads to growth arrest or apoptosis, even though the cell contains many other genetic abnormalities. This is the basis for targeted therapies like imatinib in BCR-ABL-positive CML or gefitinib in EGFR-mutant lung cancer. It explains why tumors with specific driver mutations respond dramatically to single-agent targeted therapy.

Reference: Robbins & Cotran Pathologic Basis of Disease, 10th ed.

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Written and medically reviewed by the StethoPrep medical team.