Cellular senescence is a state of permanent growth arrest characterized by an irreversible exit from the cell cycle and the secretion of senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP). The secretory process of SASP can be roughly divided into three steps:DNA damage response (DDR)-rapid paracrine, early and mature stages. The complex molecular regulation mechanisms of SASP involve DDR, p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signal pathway, activation of nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) and CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein β (C/EBPβ), epigenetic alterations of SASP gene, post-transcriptional regulation of gene and autophagy. SASP regulates a variety of pathological states caused by microenvironment changes and has been a drug target to regulate the aging effect, which providing a new therapeutic method for tumor and age-related pathological states. In this paper, we classified the different types of SASP, reviewed the role of SASP in biological processes and discussed the related molecular mechanisms.