Definition

A drug that contains the active ingredient rituximab and is used alone or with other drugs to treat adults and children aged 6 months and older with certain types of B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma, adults with chronic lymphocytic leukemia, and children aged 6 months and older with B-cell acute leukemia. It is used in patients whose cancer is CD20 positive. It is also being studied in the treatment of other conditions and types of cancer. Rituxan binds to a protein called CD20, which is found on B cells (a type of white blood cell) and some types of cancer cells. This may help the immune system kill cancer cells. Rituxan is a type of monoclonal antibody.