TCGA data also reveal that PTEN is downregulated in NSCLC tissues including lung adenocarcinoma (Additional file 2: Fig. S5d) and lung squamous cell carcinoma (Additional file 2: Fig. S5e) compared with that in normal lung tissues, and correlated with poor OS and post progression survival (PPS) of NSCLC patients (Fig. 7g). This evidence concerns the gene PTEN and lung adenocarcinoma.