The Potential for Senolytics and Other Senotherapies to Improve Outcomes in Cancer Therapies

Cellular senescence is a double-edged sword in the matter of cancer. The state of senescence is a growth arrest coupled with pressure to self-destruct and a call to the immune system to destroy the senescent cell. As such it serves as a first line of defense against cancer. Most cancer treatments force large numbers of cancerous cells into senescence, in addition to causing outright cell death, shutting down their ability to replicate. Unfortunately, the presence of too many senescent cells is harmful in and of itself, as their signaling produces chronic inflammation, disrupts tissue function throughout the body, and makes the environment more hospitable for cancer growth. Thus cancer survivors who undergo chemotherapy or radiotherapy have a reduced life expectancy and greater degree of health issues, including cancer recurrence, as a result of an increased burden of senescent cells. This is a far better outcome than dying of cancer, of course, but it is nonetheless an issue to be dealt with. Now that the research community has identified senolytic drugs capable of selectively destroying a sizable fraction of senescent cells in the body, it is possible to think about both improving the efficacy of existing cancer therapies and minimizing their lingering side-effects. Senescence and Cancer: A Review of Clinical Implications of Senescence and Senotherapies Chemotherapy may cause cell death, often by apoptosis, resulting clinically in tumour regression. It m...
Source: Fight Aging! - Category: Research Authors: Tags: Medicine, Biotech, Research Source Type: blogs