The Applications of Monoclonal Antibodies in Neuro-Oncology

Central nervous system (CNS) malignancies represent one ofthe most devastating forms of cancer. Malignant gliomas, the most commonly occurring primary tumor of the CNS, have a particularly bleak prognosis despite surgery and combined radiation and chemotherapy (1, 2). Immunological approaches to diagnosis and treatment have seemed attractive, but in the past have been frustrated by technological limitations (3, 4). Monoclonal antibody methodology offers major advantages over conventional methods of antiserum production: a practically unlimited source of homogeneous, highly specific reagent which may be prepared using impure or complex antigens. This has led to a new age in neuroimmunology and neuro-oncology, with the potential for better understanding of the basic cell biology of CNS neoplasia, and for improvement in diagnosis, imaging, and therapy.