Dear Brannon,

That question is a little tricky and seems like a dangerous simplification. In my point of view, the main Hallmark of cancer (which really defines it as a Cancer) is the process of Invasion and Metastasis, since all others can be shared with benign tumors. I do not consider Invasion and Metastasis simpler than the others. Unlike you said, that Hallmark is the more complex and many of its mechanisms remain elusive.

Hope I have helped.

Dear Brannon,

I think that the type of tumors is critical here. Solid tumors and leukemias for example can be separate in two different piles. To answer your question, 1) the evasion of apoptosis is key and 2) the high efficiency of adaptability.

I'd also like to add that the hallmarks of cancer are not discrete phenomena and often overlap. For example, NF-kB is activated by inflammatory pathways, but also plays a role in cell survival and apoptosis. Growth factors promote proliferation, but they can also promote metastasis and angiogenesis. Genomic instability and break-fusion-bridge cycles can circumvent a lack of telomeres and lead to replicative immortality.

But to answer your question, I would say that preventing 1)genomic instability/mutation and 2) metastasis would be my top choices.

Genomic instability and mutation is why cancers are able to evolve and adapt to treatment so rapidly, and why benign tumors pick up new malignant habits to wreak further havoc.

I also chose metastasis because the location of tumors is why non-melanoma skin cancer is so easily curable, and why lung and pancreatic cancer is so deadly. It's also why stage IV breast cancer is usually terminal, as the metastatic cells tend to favor implanting into the lung and inoperable sites on bone.

But to reiterate, the hallmarks of cancer is an important concept that provides a good outline of common phenomena found in cancer, but it's by no means a most wanted list of individual targets.

I agree with Dr.Jason, these 2 are most important hallmarks for cancer, 1- Mutation and genomic instability, because they can lead to other hallmarks such as (uncontrollable growth and evasion form apoptosis) 2- invasion and metastasis.

Blocking cn be a way... By inactivating the expression of proliferation markers the cells could b prevented from metastasis. Vz csc

I will go for angiogenesis. Stoping angiogenesis of the cancer cell will automatically prevent invasion and matastasis.