Alemtuzumab in the treatment of chronic lymphocytic lymphoma.

[Guest guest]

Alemtuzumab in the treatment of chronic lymphocytic lymphoma.

K Boyd and CE Dearden

Expert Rev Anticancer Ther, April 1, 2008; 8(4): 525-33.

The Royal Marsden Hospital and Institute of Cancer Research, London, UK.

kboyd@...

Alemtuzumab was the first monoclonal antibody to be humanized, a process which

embeds rodent sequence fragments in a human IgG framework. The antibody target

is CD52, an antigen expressed on normal lymphocytes as well as many T- and

B-cell neoplasms. It therefore has a potential broad application across a

spectrum of B- and T-cell malignancies as well as use as an immunosuppressant

drug in, for example, bone marrow transplantation. The original licensing in the

USA and Europe was for the treatment of fludarabine-refractory chronic

lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). However, recent trials using alemtuzumab as a

first-line agent for CLL have shown superior response rates compared with

traditional alkylator therapy and this has led to US FDA approval for first-line

treatment for CLL. It seems to be particularly useful in patients with CLL who

have deletion of the TP53 tumor suppressor gene, a subset of disease that

responds poorly to other currently available chemotherapeutics.

PMID: 18402519