Intriguingly, alterations in driver genes such as NOTCH1 in esophageal cancer have been reported to be more frequent in non-cancerous areas than in cancerous areas in relation to age, suggesting that the mechanisms of clonal growth in the non-cancerous epithelium and esophageal cancer are not fully equivalent and that each has its own unique mechanism25,28. The gene discussed is NOTCH1; the disease is esophageal cancer.