This fusion results in different variants, and until now, clinicians have treated all patients with these fusions the same way. However, new research led by scientists from the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) and Stanford University shows that not all fusion variants behave alike. Different variants, different outcomesUsing CRISPR/Cas9 technology, the researchers created mouse models that reproduce the two most common human variants. The researchers also investigated the influence of 29 so-called tumor suppressor genes on the fusion-driven lung tumors. This suggests that EML4-ALK-driven forms of lung cancer should be considered in a more differentiated manner and, in the future, possibly also treated in a variant-specific manner.