Antibody-Based Biologics in Cancer Treatment

A set of vocabulary flashcards focusing on monoclonal antibodies and their mechanisms in oncology based on the lecture notes.

Antibody-Based Biologics

Therapeutic agents used to treat cancer by preventing proliferation, enhancing apoptosis, and revealing cancer cells to the immune system.

Cetuximab

A chimeric (mouse/human) monoclonal antibody that binds to and inhibits $EGFR$ ($HER1$), blocking its signalling pathway in cancers that overexpress this receptor subtype.

Trastuzumab

A biologic that binds to and inhibits $HER2$, blocking its signalling pathway; it is used to treat cancers that overexpress this receptor subtype.

HER2

An epidermal growth factor receptor ($EGFR$) subtype that forms a dimer with other $EGFRs$.

Bevacizumab

A recombinant humanised $IgG$ Mab that binds to $VEGF$, inhibiting it from binding to its receptors and regressing tumour vascularisation.

VEGF

Vascular endothelial growth factor that promotes vasculogenesis and angiogenesis by binding to $VEGFR-1$ and $VEGFR-2$ on the surface of endothelial cells.

Nivolumab

An immunoregulatory antibody that binds to $PD-1$, preventing the downregulation of cytotoxic T cell function.

PD-1

A receptor expressed by activated $CD4^+$ and $CD8^+$ T-cells that belongs to the same family as $CD28$ and $CTLA-4$.

PD-L1

The ligand of $PD-1$ that is overexpressed by cancerous cells and promotes apoptosis of T cells upon binding.