RADIOIMMUNODETECTION OF MALIGNANT SOLID TUMORS

An increased clinical utility of radiolabelled monoclonal antibodies ( MoAb), recognizing a variety of different antigens expressed preferent ially in malignant tissue, for localizing primary, metastatic and recu rrent cancer has been documented in many recent investigations. This r eview focuses on both basic and practical aspects of radioimmunodetect ion in oncology and is a status report on the performance and limitati ons of radiolabelled antibody procedures currently applied to the clin ical detection of malignant solid tumours. At this time clinically val idated radioimmunodetection methods are available for colorectal, ovar ian, breast, lung, thyroid medullary, and head and neck carcinoma, and melanoma. Recent advances in humanization of MoAb significantly impro ve the prospects of effective antibody-guided radiotherapy in the near future.