Designer drugs: The biologic therapies

Abstract

Therapeutic biologies (monoclonal antibodies and fusion proteins) can target specific molecular components involved in disease pathogenesis, allowing disease focused treatment Therapeutic biologies have a significant role to play across the spectrum of clinical medicine Many agents are already licensed for clinical use In those conditions where such therapy is not licensed, but logical according to disease mechanism, a therapeutic trial can be considered in treatment refractory cases. Informed consent is then crucial Safety and cost are important considerations.