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Updated: Jun 29, 2025

Characterize Disease-related Mutants of RAF Family Kinases by Using a Set of Practical and Feasible Methods
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Published on: July 17, 2019

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The Abundance of KRAS and RAS Gene Mutations in Cancer

Edward C Stites1

  • 1Department of Laboratory Medicine and Yale Cancer Center, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA. edward.stites@yale.edu.

Methods in Molecular Biology (Clifton, N.J.)
|April 3, 2024
PubMed

Insights

Mutant RAS genes (KRAS, NRAS, HRAS) are key cancer drivers. Recent studies estimate 15-20% of human cancers have RAS mutations, with KRAS mutations in 11-14%, confirming their common role in malignancy.

Area of Science:

  • Oncology
  • Genetics
  • Cancer Epidemiology

Background:

  • Mutations in RAS genes (KRAS, NRAS, HRAS) are recognized as significant drivers of human cancer.
  • Previous estimates of RAS oncogene prevalence in cancer have varied.
  • Understanding the precise frequency of these mutations is crucial for targeted therapies.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To present updated estimates for the prevalence of RAS gene mutations in human cancers.
  • To specifically quantify the frequency of KRAS mutations across all malignancies.
  • To contextualize these findings within the broader landscape of cancer genomics.

Main Methods:

  • Integration of large-scale cancer genomics data.
  • Application of cancer epidemiology principles to mutation frequency analysis.
  • Comparative analysis with existing literature values.

Main Results:

  • Two independent research groups estimated that 15-20% of all human cancers harbor mutations in KRAS, NRAS, or HRAS.
  • KRAS mutations were specifically estimated to occur in 11-14% of all human cancers.
  • These updated figures, while potentially lower than some prior estimates, reinforce RAS oncogenes as major drivers of cancer.

Conclusions:

  • RAS gene mutations remain among the most frequent genetic alterations observed in human cancers.
  • The updated epidemiological estimates provide a refined understanding of RAS oncogene involvement across malignancies.
  • These findings underscore the importance of targeting RAS pathways in cancer treatment strategies.
Keywords:
EpidemiologyHRASKRASMutationsNRAS

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