Diagnostic applications of monoclonal antibodies to human cancer

Monoclonal antibodies elicited to surface antigens on a wide variety of normal and neoplastic cell types have been used with increasing frequency in the diagnosis and classification of cancer. Their widest application so far has been in the in vitro analysis of leukemia and lymphoma using blood or bone marrow samples or tissue biopsy specimens. Although no true leukemia-specific marker has been found, the complex biologic nature of this group of tumors has been shown by monoclonal antibody studies. More recently, these antibodies were produced against solid tumor-associated antigens. The antibodies have helped to identify the tissue of origin of malignant neoplasms and, in some cases, to monitor the course of disease. Carefully chosen panels of monoclonal antibodies will become valuable additions to the diagnostic pathologist's arsenal.