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Cell death

Cell death is an important process in the body as it promotes the removal of unwanted cells.

Failure of cells to die, or cells dying when they shouldn’t, can lead to or exacerbate many diseases.

Our research into how and why cells die is leading to new approaches to treating these conditions.

Cell death research at WEHI

Our cell death researchers are:

  • defining how cell death occurs, and how it is regulated
  • discovering how cell death impacts diseases including cancer and inflammatory conditions
  • developing treatments that modify the function of cell death proteins, as new treatments for disease

Why do cells die?

Cell death is an important process in the body. It removes cells in situations including:

  • when cells are not needed, such as during certain stages of development
  • to create a structure in the body, for example, the outer layer of the skin is made of dead cells
  • to remove excess cells, such as white blood cells after an infection has been cleared
  • if cells are damaged, such as by radiation or toxins
  • when cells are infected by viruses
Find out how you can support our research

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