Abstract
Philadelphia chromosome-positive acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) is most common in adults and is associated with poor prognosis. Since karyotypic identification of the Philadelphia translocation has been hampered by technical difficulties, we used the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to look for the BCR-ABL rearrangement in stored samples from a selected group of 314 German ALL patients. BCR-ABL transcripts were found in 77 of 179 adults and were restricted to those with B-precursor leukaemias. 55% of adult common ALL patients had BCR-ABL and its presence correlated with poor overall survival and remission duration. Of 135 children with common ALL, 5 (6%) primary cases and 8 (17%) with recurrent neoplasias were PCR-positive. We recommend prospective evaluation of BCR-ABL analysis with PCR in patients with a B-precursor leukaemia.
Publication types
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Clinical Trial
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Comparative Study
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Multicenter Study
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Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
MeSH terms
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Adult
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Base Sequence
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Child
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Chimera / genetics*
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Fusion Proteins, bcr-abl / genetics*
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Germany / epidemiology
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Humans
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Leukemia, Myelogenous, Chronic, BCR-ABL Positive / epidemiology
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Leukemia, Myelogenous, Chronic, BCR-ABL Positive / genetics*
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Leukemia, Myelogenous, Chronic, BCR-ABL Positive / mortality
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Molecular Sequence Data
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Neoplasm Recurrence, Local / epidemiology
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Neoplasm Recurrence, Local / genetics
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Neoplasm Recurrence, Local / mortality
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Polymerase Chain Reaction / methods
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Precursor B-Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma / epidemiology
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Precursor B-Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma / genetics
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Precursor B-Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma / mortality
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Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma / epidemiology
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Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma / genetics*
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Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma / mortality
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Prognosis
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Prospective Studies
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RNA, Messenger / analysis*
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RNA, Neoplasm / analysis*
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Transcription, Genetic
Substances
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RNA, Messenger
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RNA, Neoplasm
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Fusion Proteins, bcr-abl