Title:Therapeutic Monoclonal Antibodies in Clinical Practice against Cancer
Volume: 20
Issue: 16
Author(s): Navgeet Kaur*, Anju Goyal and Rakesh K. Sindhu
Affiliation:
- Chitkara College of Pharmacy, Chitkara University, Punjab,India
Keywords:
Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), therapeutic application, FDA approvals, EGFR, VEGF, CD, CTLA-4, PD-1, cancer.
Abstract: The importance of monoclonal antibodies in oncology has increased drastically following the discovery
of Milstein and Kohler. Since the first approval of the monoclonal antibody, i.e. Rituximab in 1997 by the
FDA, there was a decline in further applications but this number has significantly increased over the last three
decades for various therapeutic applications due to the lesser side effects in comparison to the traditional chemotherapy
methods. Presently, numerous monoclonal antibodies have been approved and many are in queue for
approval as a strong therapeutic agent for treating hematologic malignancies and solid tumors. The main target
checkpoints for the monoclonal antibodies against cancer cells include EGFR, VEGF, CD and tyrosine kinase
which are overexpressed in malignant cells. Other immune checkpoints like CTLA-4, PD-1 and PD-1 receptors
targeted by the recently developed antibodies increase the capability of the immune system in destroying the
cancerous cells. Here, in this review, the mechanism of action, uses and target points of the approved mAbs
against cancer have been summarized.