As cancer progresses, CD8+ T cells are continuously stimulated by tumor antigens and enter a late dysfunctional state late (28).Exhausted-like T cells isolated in progressive tumors will exhibit tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL) that are responsive to tumor antigens expressing multiple inhibitory receptors and failing to produce effector cytokines or cytotoxic molecules (29–32). The gene discussed is CD8A; the disease is cancer.