Our research into apoptosis (cell suicide)

Cancer cells growing in the lab Apoptosis is a crucial process by which our cells commit suicide, protecting the body from cancer by forcing old or faulty cells to die. It is sometimes referred to as ‘programmed cell death’.

Unfortunately the system isn’t perfect, and some cells can ‘cheat death’. Sometimes damage that should trigger apoptosis actually allows the cell to escape and carry on multiplying to form a tumour.

Our scientists are finding out how apoptosis works in healthy cells, and also investigating how the process is bypassed in cancer cells. By learning more about how apoptosis goes wrong in cancer, researchers hope to find new ways to prevent and treat the disease.

Below are some of the highlights of our apoptosis research portfolio.

Lymphoma

No specific cancer type

Prof Peter Johnson

Cancer Research UK Medical Oncology Unit

University of Southampton, Southampton

Developing new cancer treatments

Professor Peter Johnson is the Cancer Research UK's Chief Clinician, and directs the Southampton Cancer Research UK Centre. He is helping to shape the future of our clinical research across the UK. Professor Johnson is a leading expert in lymphoma - a cancer that affects the body's white blood cells. He's also working on new treatments that use the power of the body's own immune system to attack tumours.

Prof Eyal Gottlieb

Apoptosis and Tumour Metabolism Group

Beatson Institute for Cancer Research, Glasgow

Understanding the 'power stations' in cancer cells

Because cancer cells grow faster than healthy cells, they have a high demand for energy and oxygen. Professor Eyal Gottlieb, who leads a research group at the Beatson Institute for Cancer Research, is investigating the energy production 'machinery' in cancer cells, and developing ways to target it in order to treat cancer.

Prof Nicol Keith

Experimental Therapeutics, Institute of Cancer Sciences

University of Glasgow, Glasgow

Developing new anti-cancer therapies

Nicol Keith is Professor of Molecular Oncology at the University of Glasgow. He and his team are investigating how cancer cells become immortal and are using this information to develop new anticancer treatments. In particular, Professor Keith is investigating ways to target telomerase, an "immortality gene" that is switched on in eight out of ten cancers.

Prof Karen Vousden

Tumour Suppression Group

Beatson Institute for Cancer Research, Glasgow

Understanding p53: the protein at the heart of cancer

Professor Karen Vousden’s world-leading research focuses on a protein called p53 - a key player in the body's defences against cancer. Her team is finding new ways to treat the disease by harnessing the power of this crucial protein in cancer cells. Professor Vousden is Director of the Beatson Institute for Cancer Research in Glasgow, where she leads the Tumour Suppression Group.