5 ms·

So let's say you're targetting cd19 (the protein). You're saying that the target might stop emitting cd19. Okay, but then why not target cd21 or another target

• arjvik 5y ago
  Sometimes the cancer doesn't emit any marker proteins, or maybe the ones it does are difficult to detect/create antibodies to bind to. (I'm in the same situation as 2 above, I'm a software engineer with domain knowledge from working in a cancer research lab at a university; I may be entirely wrong.)
• PeterisP 5y ago
  You need to choose a marker that you can "afford" to use for destruction - which either doesn't exist at all in healthy cells, or, more likely, it exists but losing all your healthy cells with the same marker won't kill you (but is still likely to harm you, just in ways that can be treated). Such markers are scarce, and not guaranteed to exist; if we find one for this cancer (like CD19) that works, but if it fails, then it's exceedingly likely that targeting "cd21 or another target" will simply kill you because it will also destroy some vital cells in your liver or veins or brain.
  • omarhaneef 5y ago
    You typically have a choice of a few “safer” markers like cd19, 21, 22 etc Even 19 will knock out your B cells and has to be managed with various treatments.