Targeting Radiation to Tumours

Abstract

Biologically targeted radiotherapy entails the preferential delivery of radiation to solid tumours or individual tumour cells by means of tumour-seeking delivery vehicles to which radionuclides can be conjugated. Variant forms of this are the binary strategies (neutron capture therapy, photodynamic therapy) in which cell killing by the targeting moiety is dependent on activation by an external radiation beam. Monoclonal antibodies have attracted attention for some years as potentially selective targeting agents, but advances in tumour and molecular biology are now providing a much wider choice of molecular species. General radiobiological principles may be derived which are applicable to most forms of targeted radiotherapy. These principles provide guidelines for the appropriate choice of radionuclide in specific treatment situations and its optimal combination with other treatment modalities. In the future, the availability of gene targeting agents will focus attention on the use of Auger electron emitters whose high potency and short range selectivity makes them attractive choices for specific killing of cancer cells whose genetic peculiarities are known.