Moreover, aberrant activation of the PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway facilitates the stemness maintenance of NSCLC (non small cell lung cancer) cells by upregulating chemokine (C‐X‐C motif) receptor 4 (CXCR4) and the subsequent CXCR4‐stimulated STAT3 signaling.225. The gene discussed is CXCR4; the disease is non-small cell lung carcinoma.