TRP63/TP63 loss accelerates skin tumorigenesis through activation of Wnt/β-catenin signaling

Cutaneous Squamous Cell Carcinoma (cSCC) is the second most common skin cancer arising from the epidermis. Approximately 700,000 new cSCC cases are diagnosed every year in the United States [1]. It is commonly believed that the transcription factor TRP63 (mouse)/TP63 (human), plays an oncogenic role in cSCCs. Contradicting the notion that expression of TP63 is causally linked to cSCC development or progression is the observation that complete or focal loss of TP63 expression occurs in a subset of cSCCs [2].