An Overview of Radioimmunotherapy

Despite the success of current cancer treatments such as chemotherapy, serious damage to normal cells and organs occurs, which severe side effects and possibly even a risk of developing a second cancer. Therefore, there is still a need for an improved therapy for cancers; one which is proving extremely promising is radioimmunotherapy (RIT). This technique involves a protein, called an antibody, being labelled with a radioactive molecule. When administered to the patient, the radioactive antibody travels around the body until it recognises and binds to certain protein ‘markers’ present on the surface of the cancer cells, as illustrated in the diagram. Antibodies are known for their selectivity, and in RIT, they enable selective targeting of cancer cells, and specific delivery of the radioactive molecule to the tumour site. Once the radioactive antibody is attached to the cell, the radioactive molecule releases its radiation directly onto the tumour cell, damaging the cells DNA and killing the cell. As radiation can only travel so far, normal cells in the surrounding area receive minimal amounts of radiation. This blog was created to make cancer patients and their families aware of this new and exciting cancer treatment, and give examples of trials involving RIT, as well as results obtained.