First Name:
Mark
Last Name:
Luke
Major Department:
Cell and Molecular Biology
Thesis Director:
Susan Edwards
Date of Thesis:
May 2013
Howlander (2012), estimated that for 2012, approximately 1.7 million patients would be diagnosed with cancer. In the same year, almost 600,000 people will die of cancer (Howlander, 2012). These deaths occur despite advances in medical science such as early detection and the development of new chemotherapy drugs. The course of treatment for cancer has remained static since the discovery of chemotherapeutic agents, and can additionally include radiotherapy and surgery. These three treatments put elderly patients at a greater risk of complications. Of the newly diagnosed patients, approximately 55 percent will be older than 65 at the time of diagnosis (Howlander, 2012). Chemotherapy is not particularly effective for the elderly in terms of length of treatment and side effects. Its ineffectiveness lies in its inability to ignore healthy cells and target only the cancerous cells, thus other organ systems are negatively affected by treatment. A new treatment is being developed and currently undergoing clinical trials. These drugs are known as antibody-drug conjugate treatments, which are classified as combination treatments by the FDA. These antibody-drug conjugates are created after first determining the antigen that is present in the cancer. The antibody is then combined with a cytotoxic agent known effective against cancer. The cytotoxic agent is only released upon recognition of the antibody on the target cells. This prevents normal cells from being destroyed during the course of the treatment. The antibody-drug conjugates will have a higher maximum tolerated dose and fewer side effects than chemotherapy alone. The combination of these two advantages will ultimately lead to fewer complications, shorter treatment time, and faster recovery times.