HT-29 epithelial cancer cells were treated with 10 combinations of saturating or subsaturating concentrations of TNF, EGF and insulin (0, 0.2, 5, 100 ng/ml TNF and 0, 1, 100 ng/ml EGF or 0, 1, 5, 500 ng/ml insulin respectively), which collectively represent all the cues used in the study. The gene discussed is EGF; the disease is cancer.