Antibodies could lead to a better chemotherapy delivery system

A new method of delivering chemotherapy drugs could eliminate the heavy price of the treatment. Because the cell-killing therapy targets fast-growing cells, it destroys some healthy cells as well as cancerous ones. Now, new antibodies are under development that target cancer cells specifically by binding to a protein called MUC1. Targeting MUC1 could allow the antibodies to deposit toxins right into cancerous cells, preserving healthy cells. MUC1 is one of the proteins overproduced in many types of cancer. While there are other medications on the market that use similar principles to target cancer cells, they are often limited to treating one or two types of cancer. The advantages to the new antibody is that MUC1 is produced in more types of cancers. "People who are not eligible to be treated by antibodies already on the market could, following more research and development, likely be eligible for this one," Daniel Wreschner, who is developing the antibody, said.