Options For Treating Castleman Disease

Immunotherapy

Immunotherapy is a treatment that uses a man-made variation of normal elements of the immune system, or boosts the patient's immune function. The immune system makes antibodies to help fight off infections. Monoclonal antibodies or the man-made variation of antibodies are able to be formulated to target specific substances. With this type of therapy, the antibodies are programmed to target a certain substance that exists on the lymphocyte cell surfaces of which the disease initiates. In some cases of multicentric Castleman disease, there are increased levels of a protein named IL6 on the lymphocytes. A compound called siltuximab is effective at binding with this protein, and when this occurs, IL6 cannot act on the lymphocytes. In other cases of Castleman disease, a protein named CD20 exists on the surface of the lymphocyte cells. CD20 also plays a key role in the initiation of Castleman disease. An antibody called rituximab can attach to cells with the CD20 protein, and that attachment results in cell death. This helps stop the cell overgrowth in the lymph nodes.

Learn more about treating Castleman disease now.