Gain-of-function mutant p53: history and speculation

The p53 field is complex and evolving. Yet the basic challenges of this field remain the same: how does wild-type p53 prevent cancer and how do mutant forms of p53 promote the very same disease? This essay only touches on some aspects of the research that has approached these two questions and we apologize to those whose work has not been cited. What everyone must agree on is that the findings of Arnold Levine and colleagues have created and enriched one of the most lively and challenging fields in cancer research today.