Cancer cell senescence: a new frontier in drug development.

Abstract:: Senescence forms a universal block to tumorigenesis which impacts on all hallmarks of cancer, making it an attractive target for drug discovery. Therefore a strategy must be devised to focus this broad potential into a manageable drug discovery programme. Several issues remain to be addressed including the lack of robust senescence-inducing compounds and causally related biomarkers to measure cellular response. Here, we review the latest progress in translating senescence as a target for cancer therapy and some promising approaches to drug and biomarker discovery. Finally, we discuss the potential application of a senescence-induction therapy in a clinical setting.

Authors:: CJ Cairney, AE Bilsland, TRJ Evans, J Roffey, DC Bennett, M Narita, CJ Torrance, WN Keith

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