Daratumumab
DarzalexRCSB PDB 7DHA · 3D model
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A lab-made antibody that latches onto CD38, a marker found in high amounts on multiple myeloma cells, flagging those cells for destruction by the immune system.
How it works
Daratumumab works by finding and sticking to a protein called CD38 that sits on the surface of myeloma cells in large numbers. Once attached, it can trigger the cancer cell to self-destruct. It also acts like a flag, signaling the body's own immune defenses to attack and clear out the marked cells.
What it’s used for
Used to treat multiple myeloma, a cancer of plasma cells in the bone marrow. Given alongside other standard myeloma medicines for newly diagnosed patients, as well as for patients whose myeloma has come back or stopped responding to earlier treatments.
- Mechanism
- CD38 antagonist (mAb)
- Drug class
- Monoclonal antibody
- Therapeutic area
- Oncology (multiple myeloma)