# The clonal evolution of tumor cell populations

Source: https://onco.cc/key-papers/paper-nowell-science/  
OnCo record `paper-nowell-science` (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 technology page and one term page, indexed on Europe PMC as PubMed record 959840 and published in Science; the citing pages link this DOI, which is how the record was matched.

## Summary

It is proposed that most neoplasms arise from a single cell of origin, and tumor progression results from acquired genetic variability within the original clone allowing sequential selection of more aggressive sublines. Tumor cell populations are apparently more genetically unstable than normal cells, perhaps from activation of specific gene loci in the neoplasm, continued presence of carcinogen, or even nutritional deficiencies within the tumor. The acquired genetic insta0ility and associated selection process, most readily recognized cytogenetically, results in advanced human malignancies being highly individual karyotypically and biologically. Hence, each patient's cancer may require individual specific therapy, and even this may be thwarted by emergence of a genetically variant subline resistant to the treatment. More research should be directed toward understanding and controlling the evolutionary process in tumors before it reaches the late stage usually seen in clinical cancer.

Indexed on Europe PMC as PubMed record 959840 (DOI 10.1126/science.959840). Matched by DOI alone: one technology page and one term page cite this DOI among their 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: Science
- Year: 1976
- DOI: 10.1126/science.959840
- Authors: Nowell PC
- What it means: One technology page and one term page on OnCo cite 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 pages 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

- Science 1976: https://doi.org/10.1126/science.959840
- PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/959840/
- Europe PMC: https://europepmc.org/article/MED/959840

## Connected records

- technologies: [Clonal evolution and branching models](https://onco.cc/technologies/clonal-evolution-models/)
- terms: [Clonal evolution and the ecological view of cancer](https://onco.cc/terms/clonal-evolution-theory/)
- journals: [Science](https://onco.cc/journals/science/)

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