This led us to hypothesise that a decrease in the normal levels of LIMD1 protein expression as a result of LIMD1 loss of heterozygosity (LOH) or promoter methylation (Sharp et al, 2008) may disrupt the hypoxic PHD‐LIMD1‐VHL complex, and exacerbate HIF‐mediated gene expression and pro‐transforming effects in the context of a hypoxic tumour microenvironment. Here, LIMD1 is linked to neoplasm.