Bispecific Antibodies Explained: How Bispecific Antibodies Use the Immune System (https://www.myeloma.org/videos/bispecific-antibodies-explained-how-bispecific-antibodies-use-immune-system)
What Are Bispecific Antibodies And How Are They Changing the Way We Treat Multiple Myeloma?
In the past, myeloma was treated with harsh chemotherapy. Today, treatments are smarter, more targeted, and use the body’s own immune system.
Here’s how bispecific antibodies work:
- They have two “arms” (bispecific).
- One arm attaches to the myeloma cell.
- The other arm attaches to a T-cell
By linking the cancer cell and the T-cell together, the T-cell gets activated to destroy the myeloma.
IMF Chief Medical Officer Dr. Joseph Mikhael explains why this breakthrough treatment is such a powerful step forward in myeloma care.
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What are bispecific antibodies? We've seen a huge shift in treatment in multiple myeloma. We used to treat myeloma with old school chemotherapy that made patients very sick, the classic bald and barf kind of chemotherapy. But now we're using newer tools, newer treatments that are advanced, that are more effective and that employ a patient's own immune system. One of these treatments are bispecific antibodies. Bispecific antibodies are called bispecific because they have two arms to them. Here's the drug right in the middle, and it hooks onto two things at the same time. Number one, it hooks onto the myeloma cell. Number two, it hooks onto a T-cell or what we call a soldier cell in the body. Bispecific antibodies work because they bring together the cancer cell, in this case, the myeloma cell, as well as a soldier cell of the body, what we call a T-cell, and activates that T-cell to destroy the multiple myeloma. The more people know about myeloma, the louder our call for earlier diagnosis, greater access to treatment, more investment in research and equity in cancer care. Let's make myeloma known.
Joseph Mikhael, MD, MEd, FRCPC, FACP, FASCO
International Myeloma Foundation Medical Advisor
TGen, City of Hope Cancer Center—Phoenix, AZ, USA
Dr Mikhael is a Professor in the Clinical Genomics and Therapeutics Division at the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen), an affiliate of City of Hope Cancer Center. He is also the Director of Myeloma research at the HonorHealth Research Institute in Scottsdale, Arizona. Dr Mikhael specializes clinically in plasma cell disorders, namely multiple myeloma, amyloidosis, and Waldenstrom’s macroglobulinemia. He is the PI of many clinical trials, primarily in relapsed multiple myeloma, and his other clinical research interests include pharmaco-economics, communication skills, and media relations.
Dr. Mikhael recently served as the Chief Medical Officer of the International Myeloma Foundation (IMF) from 2018 to 2026 – he now serves as Medical Advisor to the IMF to provide guidance and strategic input in areas such as patient education, health disparities, collaboration with partners, international research, and publications.
Dr Mikhael has published over 200 peer-reviewed articles in these fields and lectures internationally on a regular basis. Dr. Mikhael is deeply committed to health disparities in myeloma and is the chair of the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Council at TGen. Dr. Mikhael is heavily involved in training future researchers and mentors junior faculty worldwide. Dr. Mikhael is an active member of the International Myeloma Working Group (IMWG) and recently led the ASCO guidelines in myeloma. Dr. Mikhael also serves as the Treasurer on the executive of the American Society of Hematology.
Dr. Mikhael did his medical training in Canada, including a fellowship in Multiple Myeloma at the Princess Margaret Hospital in Toronto. He also obtained his master’s degree in education from the University of Toronto. He then worked at the Mayo Clinic Arizona as a Hematologist from 2008-2018.