The frequency of TP53 mutations – highest of all cancer genes, standing at 37% in The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) cohort – indicates that most cancers benefit from the loss of TP53. However, there are nonetheless many tumors which do not bear a mutation in TP53. A part of those is explained by genetic events that phenocopy TP53 loss i.e. that have similar downstream phenotypic consequences as TP53 gene loss itself. Here, TP53 is linked to cancer.