ALK and lung cancer: AXL/ALK/FLT3 interacts with the TP53 pathway. AXL suppresses TP53 expression by binding to DNA sequences upstream from the TP53 gene. AXL is also regulated by miR-34a which is regulated by TP53. ALK inhibitors are not as effective in lung cancer patients that have rearranged ALK genes and are also mutated at TP53 as in patients with germline genes. Also, FLT-3 and TP53 also interact.