# Growth factor

Source: https://onco.cc/terms/growth-factor/  
OnCo record `growth-factor` (Term). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

A protein released by one cell that tells nearby cells to grow, divide or survive. Cancers often make their own or become hypersensitive to it.

## Summary

Growth factors are ligands for receptors on the cell surface; EGF, HER-family ligands, FGFs, IGF-1, HGF and VEGF each bind a specific receptor family and trigger the same core pathways (RAS-MAPK, PI3K-AKT). In normal tissue their supply is limited, which caps growth; a tumour that secretes its own growth factor or carries a receptor that fires without one has removed that cap. VEGF is the growth factor for blood vessels and the target of anti-angiogenic drugs, and TGF-beta is a growth factor that paradoxically restrains early tumours but helps late ones invade and hide from the immune system.

## Fields

- Kind: Term
- Last checked: 2026-09-09
- Also known as: growth factors; growth-factor; growth-factors; epidermal growth factor; vascular endothelial growth factor

## Sources

- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Growth_factor
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Growth_factor

## Connected records

- terms: [Angiogenesis](https://onco.cc/terms/angiogenesis/), [Growth signal](https://onco.cc/terms/growth-signal/), [Ligand](https://onco.cc/terms/ligand/), [Receptor](https://onco.cc/terms/receptor/), [Signalling pathway](https://onco.cc/terms/signalling-pathway/)
- targets: [EGFR](https://onco.cc/targets/egfr/), [MET](https://onco.cc/targets/met/), [VEGF / VEGFR](https://onco.cc/targets/vegf/)
- pathways: [RAS / RAF / MEK / ERK (MAPK)](https://onco.cc/pathways/ras-mapk/), [VEGF angiogenesis](https://onco.cc/pathways/vegf-angiogenesis/)

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JSON: https://onco.cc/api/v1/entities/growth-factor.json