# MONOCLONAL ANTIBODY DETECTION AND THERAPY OF CANCER

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN AT ANN ARBOR · 1987 · $146,064

## Abstract

The objective continues to be to develop techniques which will allow the
use of radiolabeled monoclonal antibodies in combination with nuclear
medicine imaging for the in vivo detection and localization of malignant
disease.  The ultimate goal is one of utilizing these reagents to deliver
therapeutic doses of radionuclides for the treatment of malignancies.
These studies should have applicability to a wide variety of tumor
systems.  However, most of our work will continue to be conducted in the
germ cell tumor system (testicular nonseminomatous tumors and female
choriocarcinomas).  We plan to continue intravenous patient imaging studies
with 5F9.3, a monoclonal antibody reactive with an antigen expressed on
both female and male germ cell tumors.  In females, we will expand our
early successful experience in the detection of occult choriocarcinomas (in
patients with a history of this tumor presenting only with a rising HCG) by
using intravenous radioantibody delivery and our recently-developed
computer-aided cinematic image display method.  In males, with
non-seminomatous testicular cancers, we plan to begin studies of the
efficacy of the intralymphtic route of radioantibody delivery in the
detection of occult foci of retroperitneal nodal disease.  This method,
shown capable of detecting very small foci of disease in our animal model,
wll be evaluated initially with I-131 antibody.  However, in the 3rd-5th
grant years I-123 radioantibody SPECT will also be studied, with images
evaluated by comparison to CT, lymphangiography, and surgical resection
with specimen counting histology, immunoperoxidase staining and
autoradiography.  If this diagnostic approach is successful, it will lead
to more rational decisions on which patients should have lymph node
dissections and on when chemotherapy can be discontinued.  Additional
monoclonal antibodies we have developed which are strongly reactive with
testicular tumors, such as UM149 and 8D3, will simultaneously be evaluated
in the animal model system for tumor localization.  Several new high
affinity monoclonal antibodies will be produced, selecting for reactivity
with the antigen recognized by the 5F9.3 and evaluated as above.
Radioantibodies developing the highest tumor/non-tumor ratios will be
evaluated for radiotherapeutic potential in a nude mouse model.  If these
animal therapeutic results are promising, then therapy in man will be
undertaken.  The methods developed in this work should have a significant
impact on the diagnosis and therapy of germ cell tumors and may be more
broadly applicable to providing new capabilities in the detection and
therapy of cancer.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 3171586
- **Project number:** 3R01CA033802-04S1
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN AT ANN ARBOR
- **SAM.gov UEI:** GNJ7BBP73WE9
- **Principal Investigator:** RICHARD Leo WAHL
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 1987
- **Award amount:** $146,064
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 1983-09-30 → 1990-02-28

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/3171586

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 3171586, MONOCLONAL ANTIBODY DETECTION AND THERAPY OF CANCER (3R01CA033802-04S1). Retrieved via MORVS 2026-10-25 from https://api.morvs.ai/grant/nih/3171586. Licensed CC0.

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