Apport de la radio-immunothérapie au traitement des lymphomes

Radioimmunotherapy (RIT) is an emerging treatment option for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Only Zevalin® (Bayer Schering Pharma) radiolabeled with yttrium 90 (90Y) is approved in France for the treatment of adult patients with rituximab relapsed or refractory CD20+ follicular B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. This radioimmunotherapeutic agent consists of ibritumomab, a murine anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody, conjugated to the metal chelator tiuxetan for retention of the beta emitter 90Y. This review presents the concept of RIT. The pharmacological characteristics of [90Y]-ibritumomab tiuxetan, the specificity of its preparation and its special precautions for use will be described. The other radionuclides and antibodies in development will also be mentioned.