Review: advances in monoclonal antibody tumour targeting.

Since the breakthrough in producing monoclonal antibodies was achieved, this new tool has opened up numerous avenues in basic science and clinical investigation. In the area of oncology, monoclonal antibodies were initially seen as offering new hopes of a cure and many investigations in the last decade therefore focused on applying these reagents in tumour diagnosis and therapy. The results to date have been less encouraging and have served as a basis for understanding current limitations in the application of monoclonal antibodies and designing future strategies to overcome these problems. Advances in molecular biology now offer the possibility of better understanding tumour antigens and of constructing recombinant antibody fragments and fusion proteins with novel effector functions. Furthermore, advances in chelate and isotope chemistry have enabled the use of more potent and stable radiolabelled immunoconjugates. Better understanding of tumour biology and the mechanisms of tumour escape from current therapeutic approaches in opening up the intriguing possibility of combining monoclonal antibody-based therapy with chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and biological response modifiers.