The final goal of this project is to provide a product which can be used prior to surgery to aid the surgeon in localizing parathyroid neoplasia or hyperplasia. The lack of simple, clinically useful techniques for pre- or intraoperative localization of parathyroid tissue is one of the most difficult problems in the surgical management of patients with parathyroid disease. Variations in the positions of the parathyroid glands in the neck and in he superior mediastinum and the close relationship of the glands to the recurrent laryngeal nerve make surgery difficult. We propose to develop radiolabeled antibodies which can be used for the in vivo detection and localization of parathyroid tissue in patients who are candidates for surgery. In Phase I, we propose to prepare antibodies to human parathyroid hormone (hPTH) and to determine if these antibodies localize in parathyroid lesions of archived, paraffinembedded tumor specimens. In Phase II, a radiopharmaceutical for parathyroid imaging will be designed utilizing antibodies defined in Phase I. Furthermore, we will attempt to devise an animal model and carry out preclinical testing.
