Epi-Regulation of Cell Death in Cancer

How do organisms regulate the correct balance between the production of “new” cells and the elimination of the “old” ones, remains an important biology issue under investigation. Cell(s) death represents a fundamental process involved in organism development and cell homeostasis, whose alteration is considered one hallmark of cancer and lead to drug resistance and consequently treatment failure. The recent re-classification of cell death has identified new molecular programs in which several proteins have a pivotal role. Several studies have highlighted a direct link between epigenetic modifications and cell death mechanisms. Different epi-modifications have been described, capable of regulating diverse key players implicated in cell death, leading to uncontrolled proliferation of cancer cells. Scientific efforts are focused on the understanding the epigenetic regulation of cell death mechanisms by developing tools and/or new epi-molecules able to overcome cell death resistance. The development of new epi-molecular tools can overcome cell death deregulation thus potentially improving the sensitivity to the anti-tumor therapies. This chapter focuses on the main epigenetic deregulations in cell death mechanisms in cancer.