To determine whether suppression of the eEF-2 kinase-mediated autophagy alters sensitivity of tumor cells to growth factor inhibitors that are in clinical use, we first transfected MCF-7 cells with an eEF-2 kinase-targeted siRNA or a non-targeting RNA, and then treated the transfected cells with a series of concentrations of gefitinib or lapatinib. The gene discussed is EEF2K; the disease is neoplasm.