●Inflammation and cancer: the long reach of Ras Karin, M. Nature Medicine January (2005) The link between inflammation and cancer was first suggested by the Greek doctor Galen more than 2,000 years ago. This News and Views article discusses the recent finding that RAS proto-oncogenes promote tumour inflammation as well as vasculogenesis and tumour growth.

●Cross-species comparisons of cancer signaling. Graeber, T. G. & Sawyers, C. L. Nature Genetics January (2005)

●Endemic Burkitt's lymphoma: a polymicrobial disease? Rochford, R., Cannon, M. J. & Moormann, A. M. Nature Reviews Microbiology February (2005) This Opinion paper considers the evidence that Burkitt's lymphoma — the most common childhood cancer in equatorial Africa — is a polymicrobial disease that involves both Epstein-Barr virus and Plasmodium falciparum.

●Genomics in breast cancer — therapeutic implications. Lønning, P. E., Sørlie, T. & Børresen-Dale, A. -L. Nature Clinical Practice Oncology January (2005)

●What's wrong with our cancer models? Kamb, A. Nature Reviews Drug Discovery February (2005) Some researchers maintain that genetically engineered mice are highly effective models for studying new anticancer drugs; others say that they are faulty and improperly used. This Opinion article considers these viewpoints and discusses how cancer models should best be selected and interpreted.

●B-cell lymphoma: suppressing a tumor suppressor. Dent, A. Nature Medicine January (2005)

●Dysregulation of the TSC-mTOR pathway in human disease. Inoki, K, Corradetti, M. N. & Guan, K. -L. Nature Genetics January (2005) This Review article discusses evidence that dysregulation of the mammalian target of rapamycin pathway is the molecular basis of hamartoma syndromes and other cellular hypertrophic disorders.

●Raf and VEGF: emerging therapeutic targets in Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus infection and angiogenesis in hematopoietic and nonhematopoietic tumors. Hamden, K. E. et al. Leukemia January (2005)

●Oncogene 10 January (2005) In this issue of Oncogene, guest editor Wei Dai has brought together a series of articles that focus on polo-like kinases, which have vital roles in the cell cycle and which are associated with cancer.