Apoptosis is a cell death program that is important for normal tissue development and for
removal of damaged, old, or infected cells. This pathway is responsible for eradication of 60
billion cells per day from the human body. During apoptosis, the nucleosomal DNA
fragments and the cell undergo structural changes whereby the nucleus and cytoplasm
condense and break the cell into small membrane-bound structures [1,2]. These structures
are engulfed by neighboring cells and are degraded by lysosomal enzymes.
The apoptosis program is deregulated in cancer, leading to malignant cells [3]. The
hematopoietic system is particularly sensitive to deregulation in the apoptosis program as