Hypersensitivity to monoclonal antibodies used for cancer and inflammatory or connective tissue diseases

To review the medical literature on hypersensitivity reactions to therapeutic monoclonal antibodies for patients with malignant tumors and chronic inflammatory or connective tissues diseases.

We searched the PubMed database using the terms monoclonal antibody, hypersensitivity, and allergy.

We selected case reports and cohort studies of patients with hypersensitivity reactions to monoclonal antibodies. We included selected review articles to glean expert opinion on issues for which high-quality data are available. We sought specific information on the incidence, clinical description, pathobiology, and treatment of reactions.

Hypersensitivity reactions to therapeutic monoclonal antibodies can be classic type I (mast cell mediated, perhaps IgE dependent) reactions, cytokine release reactions, or type IV cell-mediated reactions. There are limited data on the frequency of such reactions, and because new agents are added to the set at a relatively high rate, it is difficult to determine precisely the incidence of reactions to this class of drugs as a whole. The classification of a specific hypersensitivity reaction depends mainly on the medical history. Skin testing may be available but often is not validated and may be prohibitively expensive. Avoidance of the culpable agent is ideal, but if treatment with the responsible drug is necessary, rapid drug desensitization is an option for type I reactions. Desensitization is less likely to be effective for cytokine release reactions and is contraindicated for type IV reactions.

Hypersensitivity reactions to therapeutic monoclonal antibodies are heterogeneous. Management depends on accurate identification and thoughtful consideration of the pathobiologic features of the reaction.