# The MYC oncogene - the grand orchestrator of cancer growth and immune evasion

Source: https://onco.cc/key-papers/paper-dhanasekaran-nat-rev-clin-oncol/  
OnCo record `paper-dhanasekaran-nat-rev-clin-oncol` (Key paper). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

Paper cited by one pathway page, indexed on Europe PMC as PubMed record 34508258 and published in Nature Reviews Clinical Oncology; the citing page links this DOI, which is how the record was matched.

## Summary

The MYC proto-oncogenes encode a family of transcription factors that are among the most commonly activated oncoproteins in human neoplasias. Indeed, MYC aberrations or upregulation of MYC-related pathways by alternate mechanisms occur in the vast majority of cancers. MYC proteins are master regulators of cellular programmes. Thus, cancers with MYC activation elicit many of the hallmarks of cancer required for autonomous neoplastic growth. In preclinical models, MYC inactivation can result in sustained tumour regression, a phenomenon that has been attributed to oncogene addiction. Many therapeutic agents that directly target MYC are under development; however, to date, their clinical efficacy remains to be demonstrated. In the past few years, studies have demonstrated that MYC signalling can enable tumour cells to dysregulate their microenvironment and evade the host immune response. Herein, we discuss how MYC pathways not only dictate cancer cell pathophysiology but also suppress the host immune response against that cancer. We also propose that therapies targeting the MYC pathway will be key to reversing cancerous growth and restoring antitumour immune responses in patients with MYC-driven cancers.

Indexed on Europe PMC as PubMed record 34508258 (DOI 10.1038/s41571-021-00549-2). Matched by DOI alone: one pathway page cites this DOI among its external links (the pages are listed under Related), and this page was written so that the citation resolves inside OnCo. No figure has been checked by an editor.

## Fields

- Kind: Key paper
- Last checked: 2026-09-22
- Tags: europepmc-ingest
- Journal: Nature Reviews Clinical Oncology
- Year: 2022
- DOI: 10.1038/s41571-021-00549-2
- Authors: Dhanasekaran R, Deutzmann A, Mahauad-Fernandez WD, et al.
- What it means: One pathway page on OnCo cites this paper by its DOI; this record gives the citation a page of its own so a reader can follow it without leaving OnCo. Read the abstract above alongside the citing page listed under Related; the record was created automatically from the Europe PMC entry and its figures have not been checked by hand.
- Caveats: Matched to the citing OnCo records by DOI alone; the summary reproduces the Europe PMC abstract and no figure has been verified against the full paper.

## Sources

- Nat Rev Clin Oncol 2022: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41571-021-00549-2
- PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34508258/
- Europe PMC: https://europepmc.org/article/MED/34508258

## Connected records

- pathways: [MYC](https://onco.cc/pathways/myc/)
- journals: [Nature Reviews Clinical Oncology](https://onco.cc/journals/nature-reviews-clinical-oncology/)

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