# MUC6

Source: https://onco.cc/targets/muc6/  
OnCo record `muc6` (Target). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

MUC6 (Mucin-6) is a gene that drives cell growth when it is altered. The public catalogues list it as an oncogene driver, and it is called a cancer driver by mutation analysis of patient cohorts. Tied to Hepatocellular carcinoma, Acute myeloid leukaemia and Non-small-cell lung cancer.

## Summary

May provide a mechanism for modulation of the composition of the protective mucus layer related to acid secretion or the presence of bacteria and noxious agents in the lumen. Plays an important role in the cytoprotection of epithelial surfaces and are used as tumour markers in a variety of cancers. May play a role in epithelial organogenesis.

IntOGen calls it a driver in 3 cohorts (3 activating, 0 loss-of-function), covering Acute Myeloid Leukaemia, Hepatocellular Carcinoma, Lung Squamous Cell Carcinoma.

## Fields

- Kind: Target
- Last checked: 2026-09-23
- Also known as: mucin 6, oligomeric mucus/gel-forming (gene/pseudogene); Mucin-6; MUC-6
- Tags: cancer-genes-wave
- Symbol: MUC6
- Class: oncogene
- Biology: May provide a mechanism for modulation of the composition of the protective mucus layer related to acid secretion or the presence of bacteria and noxious agents in the lumen. Plays an important role in the cytoprotection of epithelial surfaces and are used as tumour markers in a variety of cancers. May play a role in epithelial organogenesis. Location: Secreted (UniProt). Locus 11p15.5 (HGNC).
- Where found: Hepatocellular carcinoma: IntOGen driver in 1 cohort (HCC); Acute myeloid leukaemia: IntOGen driver in 1 cohort (AML); Non-small-cell lung cancer: IntOGen driver in 1 cohort (LUSC)

## Notes

- Written by scripts/fetch-cancer-genes.ts from CIViC, Open Targets, IntOGen, HGNC and UniProt; the function text is UniProt's, condensed and in UK spelling. Roles: IntOGen calls it an activating (Act) driver in 3 cohorts. Evidence tier "cohort-driver" is the strongest of those signals.
- Prevalence not recorded: none of the sources gives a positivity rate.

## Sources

- HGNC HGNC:7517: https://www.genenames.org/data/gene-symbol-report/#!/hgnc_id/HGNC:7517
- UniProt Q6W4X9: https://www.uniprot.org/uniprotkb/Q6W4X9/entry
- NCBI Gene 4588: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/gene/4588
- Ensembl ENSG00000184956: https://www.ensembl.org/Homo_sapiens/Gene/Summary?g=ENSG00000184956

## Connected records

- collections: [IntOGen](https://onco.cc/collections/intogen/)
- cancers: [Acute myeloid leukaemia](https://onco.cc/cancers/aml/), [Hepatocellular carcinoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/hcc/), [Non-small-cell lung cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/nsclc/)

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JSON: https://onco.cc/api/v1/entities/muc6.json