By means of meta-analysis approaches and interspecies comparison we developed a signature composed by 20 genes, which displays the following attributes: i) it is composed by genes displaying increased expression in tumors compared to normal tissue, being possible targets with important functions in the carcinoma maintenance/aggressiveness; ii) it is independent of the genotype (Trp53ΔEC or RbΔEC; Trp53ΔEC) or the histological subtype; and more importantly, iii) it can identify human primary tumors bearing TP53 mutations and/or displaying a more aggressive malignant behavior. The gene discussed is TP53; the disease is carcinoma.