This book is the first spin-on book to the Encyclopedia of Life Sciences. There have been three other spin-offs: The Handbook of Proteins, The Handbook of Plant Sciences and The Handbook of Human Molecular Evolution. The book comprises 29 ELS articles relevant to researcher studying cell death and related disease. It will be full colour. All of the articles will be available as part of ELS online. This work focuses on cell death, an area of increasing interest within the research community. Many of the molecular mechanisms by which cells kill themselves have recently been discovered. Of particular importance is that many abnormalities in the regulation of cell death have now been linked to human disease. Due to the rapid growth of the field, many of the publications on cell death are not scientifically sound, with many results being contradicted, or remaining controversial. Nonetheless, several new potential drugs have been developed on the molecular mechanisms of cell death, and several advanced clinical trials look highly promising. This book on cell death is timely because experiments (in particular with gene KO mice) have helped clear up some of the controversies, and advances in medicinal chemistry have meant that new therapies based on understanding of cell death mechanisms have commenced to clinical trials in humans. This book will focus on some of those aspects, whilst covering the basic science of the field. This makes the book of interest to medicinal chemists and clinicians, in addition to basic scientists.