{"entity":{"id":"senescence-targeting","kind":"technology","name":"Senolytics and senescence-directed therapy","aka":[],"tldr":"Chemotherapy leaves behind zombie cells that will not divide but poison their neighbours. Senolytics aim to clear them.","summary":"Therapy-induced senescent cells secrete inflammatory factors that promote relapse, drive fatigue, and accelerate ageing in survivors. Preclinically, a one-two punch of a senescence-inducing drug followed by a senolytic such as navitoclax improves outcomes. In humans, senolytic trials are concentrated in ageing, osteoporosis and neurodegeneration: a September 2026 registry search found no phase 2 senolytic study in cancer survivors. Navitoclax's thrombocytopenia limits dosing.","status":"preclinical","asOf":"2026-09-08","links":[{"label":"ClinicalTrials.gov: senolytic","url":"https://clinicaltrials.gov/search?term=senolytic"}],"tags":["frontier","radical"],"related":[],"cancers":[],"sections":["supportive-care","targeted-therapy","rejuvenation"],"technologies":["cytotoxic-chemotherapy","cardio-oncology"],"targets":["bcl2"],"drugs":[],"companies":[],"institutions":[],"pathways":[],"terms":[],"trials":[],"people":[],"bottlenecks":[],"keyPapers":[],"journals":[],"dependsOn":[],"notes":[],"principle":"Senescent cells depend on anti-apoptotic BCL-2 family proteins to survive; BH3 mimetics, or dasatinib plus quercetin, kill them selectively.","strengths":["Could reduce both relapse and long-term treatment toxicity","Intermittent dosing may suffice","Existing drugs available for repurposing"],"limitations":["Almost no oncology clinical data","Navitoclax causes thrombocytopenia","Senescence is protective as well as harmful, so timing matters"]},"route":"/technologies/senescence-targeting/","neighbours":{"section":[{"id":"rejuvenation","kind":"section","name":"Recovery & Rejuvenation","route":"/fronts/rejuvenation/"},{"id":"supportive-care","kind":"section","name":"Supportive Care & Survivorship","route":"/fronts/supportive-care/"},{"id":"targeted-therapy","kind":"section","name":"Targeted Therapy","route":"/fronts/targeted-therapy/"}],"technology":[{"id":"cardio-oncology","kind":"technology","name":"Cardio-oncology","route":"/technologies/cardio-oncology/"},{"id":"cytotoxic-chemotherapy","kind":"technology","name":"Cytotoxic chemotherapy","route":"/technologies/cytotoxic-chemotherapy/"}],"target":[{"id":"bcl2","kind":"target","name":"BCL-2","route":"/targets/bcl2/"}],"roadmap":[{"id":"cure-paths","kind":"roadmap","name":"Paths to cures: interception, eradication, control","route":"/roadmaps/cure-paths/"},{"id":"frontier-2035","kind":"roadmap","name":"Radical oncology: what could change the war by 2035","route":"/roadmaps/frontier-2035/"}],"pathway":[{"id":"drug-tolerant-persisters","kind":"pathway","name":"Drug-tolerant persister cells","route":"/pathways/drug-tolerant-persisters/"}]}}