Monoclonal antibodies have vast clinical applications in several fields of medicine, including oncology, gastroenterology, and rheumatology. By assessing anti-drug antibodies and doing quantitative measurement of therapeutic antibodies, laboratories can better manage patients receiving these treatments.

An afternoon short course at AACC’s Annual Meeting & Clinical Lab Expo on July 28, “Clinical and Laboratory Aspects of Monoclonal Antibody Therapeutics” (73219), will highlight steps laboratories can take to improve the management of patients receiving monoclonal antibody treatments.

These therapeutic agents represent a significantly growing area, Melissa Snyder, PhD, a consultant with the Mayo Clinic’s Division of Clinical Biochemistry, told CLN Stat. Monoclonal antibody therapeutics accounted for nearly 30% of total drug sales in the United States in 2012. Between 2012 and 2013, sales of certain monoclonal antibody therapeutics rose by as much as 15% to 20%. “Based on sales worldwide, monoclonal antibody therapeutics represented six out of the top 10 pharmaceutical agents in terms of sales, including being the top three sellers with sales greater than $25 billion,” Snyder said.

Snyder is moderating the session and co-presenting with Daniel Mytych, PhD, scientific director at Amgen, and Julio Delgado, MD, MS, who heads the Histocompatibility and Immunogenetics Laboratory at ARUP Laboratories.

The course will begin with a general introduction to monoclonal antibody therapeutics, including currently approved antibodies and clinical applications, according to Snyder.

Speakers will discuss the types of monoclonal antibody therapeutics and the challenges associated with them, particularly with respect to immunogenicity (formation of anti-drug antibodies). “We will focus significantly on the clinical application of therapeutic drug monitoring for monoclonal antibodies and assessment of anti-drug antibodies, including a description of currently available clinical methods,” she said.

Snyder hopes attendees will gain the following skills:

  1. Identify when it’s important to monitor for a monoclonal antibody therapeutic and an assessment on an anti-drug antibody;
  2. Describe current methods used for these tests; and
  3. Understand how to interpret results for monoclonal antibody and anti-drug antibody quantitation.

Register online to attend this session.