(K)RAS mutant human cancers

RAS mutation is the most frequent oncogenic alteration in human cancers and K-RAS is far the most frequently involved among the RAS family members followed by N-RAS. Beside the emblematic K-RAS mutant cancers, pancreatic-, colorectal- and lung adenocarcinomas, urogenital cancers are also belong to this family of malignancies. It is important that K-RAS mutation frequencies are relatively stable around the world in various cancer types with one exeption: lung adenocarcinoma. The variant allele frequencies of K-RAS seems to be cancer-type specific reflecting various carcinogenic processes. Beside point mutation K-RAS allelic imbalances are also frequent in human cancers leading to the predominance of the mutant allele. K-RAS mutant cancers are characterized by typical cancer-type specific co-occurring mutations and well-defined gene expression signatures.