Applications of monoclonal antibodies in clinical cytology as exemplified by studies with monoclonal antibody B72.3. The George N. Papanicolaou award lecture.

The monoclonal antibody (MAb) B72.3, reactive with a high-molecular-weight, glycoprotein, tumor-associated antigen, designated TAG-72, has been previously shown to be reactive with formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue sections of adenocarcinomas of the ovary, colon and breast, but not a variety of normal adult tissues. It has demonstrated utility as an immunocytochemical adjunct for the diagnosis of carcinoma in cell blocks and cytocentrifuge preparations of human serous effusions, with selective reactivity for tumor cells (particularly adenocarcinoma) over reactive mesothelium. Using the avidin-biotin complex (ABC) method of immunoperoxidase staining and formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded cell suspensions, MAb B72.3 detected tumor cells in effusions from all of 21 patients with adenocarcinoma of the breast. No reactivity was demonstrated in any cell type in benign effusions from 41 patients. In contrast, MAb B72.3 showed no reactivity to leukemic or lymphomatous effusions, or to mesothelial cells from malignant effusions. MAb B72.3 also detected adenocarcinoma cells in effusion specimens from 12 of 12 patients with adenocarcinoma of the lung and 16 of 16 patients with adenocarcinoma of the ovary. MAb B72.3 has recently been used with fine needle aspiration (FNA) biopsy specimens and the corresponding surgically excised tumors to determine cellular reactivity. Using the ABC immunoperoxidase method, fine needle aspirates and corresponding surgically excised tumors were analyzed for TAG-72 expression. Positive staining with MAb B72.3 was observed in needle aspirates of 27 of 27 adenocarcinomas and adenosquamous carcinomas of the lung, 17 of 21 adenocarcinomas of the breast, 6 of 6 adenocarcinomas of the colon and in carcinomas from other body sites. In contrast, 21 small-cell carcinomas of the lung, 13 malignant melanomas, 2 lymphomas and 2 sarcomas did not stain with the antibody. Benign lesions from the breast, lung, pancreas, parotid and thyroid also showed no staining. In many patients, tumor-bearing tissue had also been resected and was available for comparative examination with MAb B72.3. In more than 90% of these patients, the staining patterns of the tumor cells in the aspirates were found to be predictive of the patterns of antibody reactivity in the comparable surgically resected tumors. From these studies, it is concluded that MAb B72.3 defines a tumor-associated antigen that is expressed in neoplastic cells versus benign cells, that is most selectively expressed in carcinomas and that may be used as a novel adjunct for the diagnosis of neoplasms in effusions and in fine needle aspiration biopsies.