What is "immunotherapy"?

What is "immunotherapy"?

Noam Z. Drazin (Hematologist & Oncologist, Cedars-Sinai Medical Group) gives expert video advice on: What is the course of treatment for lymphoma?; How is "low-grade" lymphoma treated?; Is there any way to prevent lymphoma? and more...

Immunotherapy is a class of cancer therapeutics that utilizes antibodies to fight cancer, and I think the earliest and most classic example of immunotherapy utilized was in lymphomas and was a drug called Rituxan, which is a targeted monoclonal antibody or antibody against the B cells. The B cells are a particular type of lymphocyte that can become cancerous in lymphomas and we know that B cells (B lymphocytes) can cause non-Hodgkin's or Hodgkin's lymphoma. If we can block or stop B cells from growing or proliferating using a blocking agent or antibody like Rituxan we can stop the growth of certain lymphomas.