VEGFA and non-small cell lung carcinoma: In NSCLC, both the expression level of the hypoxia-inducible factor 1α (HIF-1α) and the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) get promoted along with the activation of α5nAChR via the ERK1/2 and PI3K/Akt signaling pathways involved in tumor cell proliferation [129].