Monoclonal antibodies (mAb) have been used as targeted treatments against cancer for more than a decade, with mixed results. Research is needed to understand mAb mechanisms of action with the goal of improving the efficacy of currently used mAbs and guiding the design of novel mAbs. While some mAb-induced tumor cell killing is a result of direct effects on tumor cell signaling, mAb opsonization of tumor cells also triggers activation of immune responses due to complement activation and engagement of antibody receptors on immune effector cells. In fact, complement has been shown to play an important role in modulating the anti-tumor activity of many mAb through complement-dependent cytotoxicity, antibody-dependent cytotoxicity, and through indirect effects by modulating the tumor microenvironment. Complement activity can have both agonistic and antagonistic effects on these processes. How the balance of such effects impacts on the clinical efficacy of mAb therapy remains unclear. In this review, we discuss the mAbs currently approved for cancer treatment and examine how complement can impact their efficacy with a focus on how this information might be used to improve the clinical efficacy of mAb treatment.
Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutical Science
19
10%
Immunology and Microbiology
19
10%
Other
14
7%
Unknown
55
28%
Attention Score in Context
Attention Score in Context
This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 16. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 09 December 2025.
All research outputs
#2,874,616
of 33,695,692 outputs
Outputs from Immunologic Research
#79
of 1,174 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#24,054
of 272,747 outputs
Outputs of similar age from Immunologic Research
#7
of 32 outputs
Altmetric has tracked 33,695,692 research outputs across all sources so far. Compared to these this one has done particularly well and is in the 91st percentile: it's in the top 10% of all research outputs ever tracked by Altmetric.
So far Altmetric has tracked 1,174 research outputs from this source. They typically receive a lot more attention than average, with a mean Attention Score of 10.0. This one has done particularly well, scoring higher than 93% of its peers.
Older research outputs will score higher simply because they've had more time to accumulate mentions. To account for age we can compare this Altmetric Attention Score to the 272,747 tracked outputs that were published within six weeks on either side of this one in any source. This one has done particularly well, scoring higher than 91% of its contemporaries.
We're also able to compare this research output to 32 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one has done well, scoring higher than 78% of its contemporaries.
