Times News Network, September 22, 2005

Immuno cancer therapies, commonly known as targeted therapies are the newest weapons in the war on lymphatic cancer.

Working on the premise of targeting only cancerous lymphatic cells of the body, this therapy is proving a boon to Non-Hodgkin's Lymhoma (NHL) patients thanks to its minimal side effects. The basic premise of this therapy -- or MabThera -- is that it identifies features specific to cancer cells and kills them accordingly.

"This leaves the rest of the normal cells around them unharmed,"says Dr Abhay Bhave. "MabThera is the world's first monoclonal antibody therapy for treatment of NHL.

This targeted therapy identifies the protein present on the cancerous cell and binds itself to it. The process results in activation of the body's immune system to attack and destroy the marked cell,"adds Dr Bhave.

According to Dr Chirag Desai, MabThera is the emerging treatment of choice for many. For 60-year-old former NHL patient Satish Rao, a combination of MabThera and chemotherapy was what ultimately irradiated his cancer.

"As a part of the maintainance therapy, I only underwent MabThera. And today, I am in total remission,"says Rao.