"ADCS have already become a mainstay treatment option across a variety of both hematologic and solid cancers"

The resurgence of antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) in cancer therapy signifies a shift towards targeted, highly effective treatments, leveraging the power of monoclonal antibodies to deliver potent cytotoxic payloads directly to cancer cells, minimising harm to healthy tissues.

- Ayesha Siddiqui

Dr Rafael G. Amado, President and Head, Global Research and Development, Zai Lab, USA

In an interaction with BioSpectrum, Dr Rafael G. Amado, President and Head of Global Research and Development at Zai Lab, discusses the resurgence of ADCs in cancer therapy and explains how ADCs differ from traditional treatments like chemotherapy and biologics. He also highlights the promising ADC candidates in development at Zai Lab and what distinguishes them from other ADCs. Edited excerpts;

Can you provide an overview of the primary components of ADCs and how they work in general?

Antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), combine monoclonal antibodies specifically targeted to antigens on the surface of tumour cells with powerful anti-cancer molecules joined by a chemical linker. With the perspective of someone who has worked in cancer research for more than 25 years and helped develop 15 oncology-specific drugs, I view ADCs as a very valuable class of therapeutics. By delivering higher concentrations of cytotoxic agents and reducing off-target side effects, they have potential to deliver a higher benefit to patients than chemotherapy alone with a more limited toxicity profile.

What differentiates ADCs from other categories of cancer therapies such as chemotherapy or biologics? Why would a physician use an ADC vs one of these other categories of therapies?

ADCs deliver chemotherapy in a targeted fashion: the toxic payload is liberated largely in the tumour cell and microenvironment (rather than elsewhere in the body) by taking advantage of a trafficking molecule, generally an antibody, that binds to a tumour-associated antigen.