Immunocytochemical Labelling of Haematological Samples Using Monoclonal Antibodies

I reflect on my experience working with David Y. Mason in the Leukaemia Research Laboratories in the Nuffield Department of Pathology at the University of Oxford in the early 1980s. This was soon after the first monoclonal antibodies had been produced, which led to an exciting and productive time in biological discovery and pathology diagnostics. A specific focus in the laboratory was the development of immunoenzymatic staining methods that would enable monoclonal antibodies to be applied in diagnostic practice. This paper describes the work that led to the performance of immuno-alkaline phosphatase staining on blood and bone marrow smears, the success of which changed leukaemia diagnosis.