# Apoptosis

Source: https://onco.cc/terms/apoptosis/  
OnCo record `apoptosis` (Term). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

The cell's built-in self-destruct programme, which tidily dismantles a damaged or unwanted cell without alarming its neighbours. Cancer cells disable it by mutating TP53 or overproducing BCL-2; chemotherapy and radiation work largely by inflicting enough damage to trigger it, and venetoclax removes the BCL-2 shield directly.

## Summary

Apoptosis is triggered from inside (DNA damage sensed by p53, which tips the balance of BCL-2 family proteins and releases enzymes called caspases) or from outside (death signals from immune cells). Tumours resist it by mutating TP53, overexpressing BCL-2 or MCL-1, or losing the proteins that would push them over the edge; 'resisting cell death' is one of the hallmarks of cancer. Chemotherapy and radiation work largely by inflicting enough damage to trigger apoptosis, venetoclax removes the BCL-2 shield directly, and the calm, non-inflammatory nature of apoptosis is why it does not, by itself, alert the immune system, unlike immunogenic cell death.

## Fields

- Kind: Term
- Last checked: 2026-09-09
- Also known as: apoptotic; programmed cell death; cell death; pro-apoptotic; anti-apoptotic; undergo apoptosis; induce apoptosis; induces apoptosis; triggers apoptosis

## Sources

- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apoptosis
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apoptosis

## Connected records

- terms: [Cell](https://onco.cc/terms/cell-term/), [Hallmark: resisting cell death](https://onco.cc/terms/resisting-cell-death/), [Immunogenic cell death](https://onco.cc/terms/immunogenic-cell-death/), [Necrosis](https://onco.cc/terms/necrosis/), [Radiotherapy](https://onco.cc/terms/radiotherapy/), [Tumour suppressor gene](https://onco.cc/terms/tumour-suppressor-gene/)
- pathways: [Ferroptosis & regulated cell death](https://onco.cc/pathways/ferroptosis-cell-death/), [Intrinsic apoptosis (BCL-2 family)](https://onco.cc/pathways/apoptosis-bcl2/), [p53 / RB / cell-cycle checkpoint](https://onco.cc/pathways/p53-cell-cycle/)
- targets: [Adenosine deaminase (ADA)](https://onco.cc/targets/ada/), [BCL-2](https://onco.cc/targets/bcl2/), [TP53](https://onco.cc/targets/tp53/)
- drugs: [Venetoclax](https://onco.cc/drugs/venetoclax/)
- key papers: [Levine 1997: p53, the cellular gatekeeper for growth and division](https://onco.cc/key-papers/paper-levine-p53-gatekeeper-cell-1997/)
- journals: [Cellular oncology](https://onco.cc/journals/cellular-oncology/)

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JSON: https://onco.cc/api/v1/entities/apoptosis.json