Activation of the Drosophila innate immune system accelerates growth in cooperation with oncogenic Ras

Innate immune signaling acts as a surveillance system to fight potential infections, but it can become overactivated in malignant cells. These authors show that the tissue-protective functions of innate immune signaling involving oncogenic Ras can be misused by premalignant cells in Drosophila to induce overgrowth in the initial stages of tumor development.