Constitutive activation of NF-κB has been reported in many tumours (Baldwin, 1996), including androgen-independent prostate cancer cells (Pajonk et al, 1999; Palayoor et al, 1999; Suh et al, 2002) and oestrogen receptor-negative breast cancer cells (Biswas et al, 2001). The gene discussed is NFKB1; the disease is breast cancer.