Using an shRNA library, an in vivo xenograft model established from a human colon cancer cell line showed that knockdown of TMED2 and SOX12 enhanced metastatic spread of colon cancer cells (Duquet et al, 2014), and an in vivo xenograft model established from human pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma cells showed that knockdown of WD repeat‐containing protein 5 (WDR5), a member of the COMPASS histone H3K4 methyltransferase complex, resulted in dramatic tumour growth arrest (Carugo et al, 2016). The gene discussed is WDR5; the disease is colonic neoplasm.