Substantiating this point, we found the major regulators and effectors of apoptosis, such as p53 and Caspases, were significantly upregulated in the siPTK7 cells (Fig. 3e), suggesting PTK7 may play a major role in regulating apoptosis in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma. This evidence concerns the gene PTK7 and esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.