A large GWAS meta‑analysis spanning more than 640,000 individuals identified a rare noncoding variant, rs17834140‑T, that lowers risk of clonal hematopoiesis of indeterminate potential (CHIP) and subsequent blood cancers. Published in Science, the work from Vijay G. Sankaran’s lab links the protective allele to weakened MSI2 RNA‑binding protein activity via disruption of a GATA‑2 binding site in hematopoietic stem cells. Functional validation in gene‑edited human HSCs showed reduced clonal expansion when the variant was present, suggesting a genetic mechanism of inherited resilience to age‑related hematologic malignancies. The authors propose MSI2 as a druggable node for therapeutic approaches aimed at restraining clonal growth. Clarification: clonal hematopoiesis (CH) describes expansion of blood stem cell clones bearing somatic mutations that can increase leukemia risk with age.