The observation that the enzyme telomerase is up-regulated in 80-90% of cancer 
cells isolated from primary human tumors but is absent in neighboring cells of 
healthy tissue has resulted in significant efforts to validate telomerase as an 
anticancer drug target and to develop effective approaches toward its 
inhibition. In addition to inhibitors that target the enzymatic function of 
telomerase, efforts toward immunotherapy using peptides derived from its 
catalytic subunit hTERT and hTERT-promoter driven gene therapy have made 
significant advances. The increased level of telomerase in cancer cells also 
provides a potential platform for cancer diagnostics. Telomerase inhibition 
leads to disruption of a cell's ability to maintain the very ends of the 
chromosomes, which are called telomeres. Thus, the telomere itself has also 
attracted attention as an anticancer drug target. In this Perspective, 
interdisciplinary efforts to realize the therapeutic potential of targeting 
telomere maintenance with a focus on telomerase are discussed.