That's the title of the book: P53, The Gene That Cracked The Cancer Code by Sue Armstrong, a science writer.
To me the book was a tedious read because it follows p53 research from the very beginning when they thought it was an oncogene. After some 10 years of thinking it was an oncogene, they discovered it's really a tumor suppressor gene. To make a long story short, the book ends on an "optimistic" note. Gerard Evan, a UK biology professor, was quoted in the last paragraph of the book predicting positive changes to "contain" cancer which may happen over a period of 10, 15, to 20 years. And that's an optimistic estimate.
My conclusion: I'm not going to hold my breath waiting for a genetic cure for cancer. If it comes, it won't come soon enough for those of us who are 60+ years old. I'm 74. I figure the best I can do NOW is to live the healthiest lifestyle that I possibly can.
Here's a link that explains the P53 gene:
http://www.ehow.com/facts_5864267_fu...-p53-gene_html
You may remember I said previously that genes can be turned on and off based on lifestyle activities. This is the case with the P53 gene, in my opinion. At some point it may stop functioning normally - it gets turned off. Notice in the last paragraph of the link, under Current Research, they say that scientists are looking for "ways of replacing, repairing or
turning on the p53 gene." But, guess what, they're not looking for lifestyle changes because they are geneticists.
T. Colin Campbell, PhD, has already demonstrated how cancer initiation (promotion and progression) can be turned on and off through dietary means. For more information on that, read his book "The China Study".