Alemtuzumab (Campath-1H)
C. Querfeld, T.M. Kuzel, J. Guitart, S.T. Rosen
Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Dermatology, Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, USA
Monoclonal antibodies (MoAb) augment the host anti-tumor response by selectively targeting the malignant cells. MoAb can mediate anti-tumor effects through three major mechanisms including intrinsic cytotoxic activity, antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC), and activation of complement-dependent cytolysis. Alemtuzumab is a humanized IgG1 MoAb that targets the glycosylated peptide cell surface antigen CD52 that is abundantly expressed (approximately 500,000 molecules/cell) on normal and malignant B- and T-cells, but not on hematopoietic stem cells. It was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2001 for the treatment of refractory B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia (B-CLL).
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