The Role of KRas in Cancer

KRas is a protein that controls how often a cell divides. To do this it needs to be switched on before it can turn on cell division pathways. When no longer needed, it is then turned off. A tiny alteration in KRas leads to a protein that is always switched on. This means that the cell division pathways are also constantly switched on. In this situation, cells are more likely to multiply outside the normal limits controlling cell division, leading to formation of tumours.