Monoclonal antibodies have had their impact on biomedical research for more than a decade. Beside their exuberant use as reagents, quite a number of diagnostic and therapeutic approaches have been followed and an impressive number of technological improvements, e.g., humanization, recombinant miniantibodies, have been elaborated to strengthen the principle. With respect to clinical applications, the first generation of antibody 'drugs' is yielding promising results while second and third generation antibody constructs are already underway. The book reviews the status of technological development and brings this into the perspective of clinical results. A rapidly growing amount of clinical data is collected in an expanding number of indications. Hence, the review of clinical study results has been grouped according to the fields of oncology and of chronic and acute inflammation. This book will be of interest to scientists working in the fields of oncology, immunology, internal medicine and clinical chemistry.
